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THE AMERICAN DEBATER. 





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THE 



AMERICAN DEBATER: 



A PLAIN EXPOSITION OF THE PRINCIPLES AND 
PRACTICE OF PUBLIC DEBATE : 

WHEREIN WILL BE FOUND, 

AN ACCOUNT OP THE QUALIFICATIONS NECESSARY TO A GOOD DELIBERATIVE 

ORATOR, AS ALSO THE MODE OE ACQUIRING THEM, THE RULES OF ORDER 

OBSERVED EST DELIBERATIVE ASSEMBLIES, DEBATES EST FULL, AND LN 

OUTLINE, ON VARIOUS INTERESTING TOPICS, NUMEROUS QUESTIONS 

FOR DISCUSSION, FORMS OF A CONSTITUTION FOR LITERARY 

CLUBS OR DEBATING SOCIETIES, ETC., ETC. 



A 



By JAMES K McELLIGOTT, LL.D., 

AUTHOR OP "THE ANALYTICAL MANUAL," "YOUNG ANALYZER," ETC 



"Here is a thing wherein I would willingly have you agree, that is, to dispute and 
not to quarrel ; for friends dispute between themselves for their better instruction, 
and enemies quarrel to destroy one another."— Plato. 



NEW YORK : 
IVISON & PHI1SFNEY, 178 FULTON 

(SUCCESSORS OF NEWMAN & IVISON, AND MARK H. NEWMAN & 00.) 

CHICAGO: S. C. GRIGGS & CO., Ill LAKE STREET. 

BUFFALO : PHINNEY & CO., 188 MAIN STREET 

CINCINNATI : MOORE, WILSTACH, KEYS & CO. 

AUBURN: SEYMOUR <fc CO. 




1855. 




■^^ 



* 



W> 



4> 






^ 



Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1855, by 

JAMES N. McELLIGOTT, 

In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the Southern District of 

New York. 



STEREOTYPED BY PRINTED BY 

THOMAS B. SMITH, J. D. TORRET, 

84 Beekraan St. N. Y. 18 Spruce Street. 



CONTENTS. 



SECTION I. 

PAGE 

Introductory Observations 7 



SECTION n. 
What is a good Debater? 12 

section nr. 

EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING 25 

SECTION IV. 

Rules of Order in Deliberative Assemblies 38 

SECTION V. 
Privileged Questions 73 

SECTION VI. 
Order of Business 109 

SECTION VII. 
Order of Debate. ..>,..*, , 119 



VI CONTENTS. 

SECTION VIII. 

PAGE 

Debating Societies 128 

SECTION IX. 
Management op a Question 132 

SECTION X. 
Debates in Full 137 

SECTION XL 
Debates in Outline 184 

SECTION XII. 
Questions with Eefeeences 204 

SECTION XIII. 
Miscellaneous Questions for Discussion 215 

SECTION XIV. 

Forms op a Constitution and By-Laws suitable for a Lit- 
erary or Debating Society 238 

APPENDIX. 

Constitution of the United States 265 

Proceedings of the Convention which formed the Constitu- 
tion 289 

Letter of the Convention to the Old Concress. 290 

Amendments to the Constitution 294 

Index to the Constitution 299 



PREFACE. 

rpHE aim of this work is not novelty, but utility. Its 
merit, therefore, if any it has, consists not in the develop- 
ment of new ideas and principles, but rather in working into 
shape, convenient for reference and for teaching, materials 
which, in some form or other, every one should have, who 
aspires to be a good debater. 

That the youth of our country ought to be conversant 
with the principles and practice of public debate, that is, 
ought to be instructed in the arts of speaking and m the 
modes of proceeding proper to a deliberative assembly, will 
immediately appear, if we but consider the impoitanfc in- 
terests, social, civil and religious, which often hang upon 
the decisions of bodies of this nature. The time has come, 
when public speaking, not that alone which is the result of 
careful premeditation, but that, especially, which, in order 
to defend truth in the moment of her danger, must itself be 
the offspring of the moment, can be no otherwise considered 
than as a necessary preparation for the active duties of life. 

To those, therefore, who feel the force of this sentiment, 
to all, in short, who, for any cause, deem it wise to fit and 



Vlll PEEFACE. 

furnish themselves for effective service in public discussion, 
this volume is offered ; not as exhausting the subject, or 
introducing everything that might be desired in the case, 
but as affording important, if not essential, aid. 

To those instructors who hold, with the author, that de- 
bates, oral or written, or both, are quite legitimate scholastic 
exercises, and better calculated than most other exercises in 
speaking and writing, to awaken interest and secure pro- 
ficiency, this work is commended as a suitable text-book, 
wherewith the subject may be brought up in regular recita- 
tions, and the precepts inculcated immediately reduced to 
practice. 

To those, finally, who have passed the precincts of youth, 
and have had, or are anxious to have, some practical skill in 
doing what is requisite to be done in deliberative assemblies, 
the author ventures to tender the following pages, as con- 
taining such hints, and suggestions, and instructions, respect- 
ing the qualifications of a good debater, and the rules of 
order in the transaction of business, as may render it, per- 
chance, a valuable book of reference. 

Such is the design of the present publication. Its plan, 
which may be discovered at a glance, is perfectly simple ; 
for it aspires to no higher office than that of being a plain, 
though reliable guide in the matters, whereof it undertakes 
to speak. 



SECTION I. 

INTRODUCTORY OBSERVATIONS. 

rpHE endowments, both natural and acquired, essen- 
-*- tial to the formation of a finished debater, are rare 
and various. Few, accordingly, ever reach the highest 
distinction in deliberative oratory. 

But, by reasonable study and practice, every person 
of ordinary ability may easily acquire such skill in 
debating, as will enable him to acquit himself decent- 
ly, if not handsomely, in a public assembly. This 
being the case, it becomes the interest, because it is 
the duty, of every American youth to prepare him- 
self, as best he can, to figure advantageously in de- 
liberative bodies. 

In so doing, however, some guidance seems neces- 
sary ; for, as he that travels, in foreign lands, without 
a guide, is apt to travel to very little purpose, so he 
that labors to become a good debater, without suitable 
direction, is most likely to miss the aim of his best 
endeavors. He ought, at least, definitely to ascertain 
what defects he is to cure, what errors he should avoid. 

To give this information, to be, in short, a sort of 
friendly guide to the principles and practice of de- 



10 INTRODUCTORY OBSERVATIONS. 

bating in public, the following pages are designed. 
They assume that the young debater ought to know 
what is peculiar to the line of speaking, in which he 
wishes to excel, and that in order to understand that, 
one way (among many) is to consider the relations 
which it sustains to the several other great branches 
of public eloquence. 

Accordingly, the question is raised, — " What is a 
good debater?" and, by way of answer, the special 
province of deliberative eloquence is carefully marked 
out, and the chief qualifications for an able delibera- 
tive orator given in detail. 

But, as among the qualifications set down as neces- 
sary to success in debating, extemporaneous speaking 
is particularly specified, because it is of the highest 
importance, the section next in order is devoted ex- 
clusively to that subject. 

The young debater may, however, be seriously em- 
barrassed by a want of acquaintance with those rules 
of order which are in general use in deliberative as- 
semblies. Hence, a large portion of the work is occu- 
pied with a course of instruction, in the form of 
question and answer, designed to render him familiar 
with what is aptly called the common code of Parlia- 
mentary law. 

But, when well provided in all other respects, there 
is a particular duty implied and involved in the very 
act of undertaking publicly to discuss a question, in 
the performance of which some aid or advice may 
be necessary. That duty is to study how best to 
treat the question ; and, therefore, under the caption, 
" Management of a Question" the student will find 



INTEODUCTOEY OBSEEVATIONS. 11 

some directions that may prove both timely and 
serviceable. 

To gratify those who might expect to find in the 
book the form of a debate in full, two questions have 
been proposed and formally discussed. This has been 
done, moreover, under the impression that some idea 
of the modes of attack and defense, usual in debate, 
some notion of the modus operandi in general, might 
be better conveyed in this way than in any other. 

The full debates are followed by a series of skeleton 
or outline debates ; that is, questions with a summary 
of arguments, or rather considerations on both sides, 
designed merely to intimate certain lines of thought, 
that may be varied and extended by the reader's own 
reflections. 

Next, in order, follows a series of questions, with 
references, under each, to authorities or sources of in- 
formation on the matters, concerning which they chal- 
lenge dispute. 

After these, is inserted an extensive list of debat- 
able questions, in respect to which the reader is left to 
act as an independent reasoner : thinking and consult- 
ing as his judgment and intelligence may direct. 

To serve the convenience of those who may, per- 
haps, for the first time, be appointed to draft Eules 
and Eegulations for a Debating or Literary Society, 
the last Section of the work is devoted to the present- 
ation of two different forms of a Constitution and 
By-Laws, suitable for such an association. 



SECTION II. 

WHAT IS A GOOD DEBATER? 

rpO estimate the importance of being a good debater, 
-*- or ascertain the qualifications essential to that char- 
acter, it is necessary briefly to consider the aim and 
scope of deliberative eloquence. 

All public speaking, except that of the pulpit,* con- 
sidered in reference to its aim, falls under one or other 
of these three ancient divisions, — Demonstrative+Ju- 
dicial, or Deliberative. 

The demonstrative has its place where great events 
or great persons are to be celebrated. It employs, 
upon occasion, the language of invective, but its par- 
ticular province is elaborate eulogy. Its appropriate 
times are the memorable anniversaries, the days of 
great public solemnity, the extraordinary occasions, 

* Pulpit eloquence is here excepted, because it does not properly 
fall under any one of these three heads, but, in reality, embraces 
the leading features of them all. 

f The term demonstrative (from the Latin demonstro, to show or 
point out clearly), is here used, as among the Latin rhetoricians, to 
signify what is showy, or abounding in show or ornament, i. e. lauda- 
tory, glorij 






WHAT IS A GOOD DEBATER? 13 

whatever their name or their nature, whereon men 
meet to mingle and express their common sympathies. 
It is expected to display the riches of rhetoric, and to 
exert every force and every fascination of oratory. 
Its strong appeal is to the heart. Its purpose is the 
praise of virtue or the reprobation of vice. 

The judicial is that which is engaged in the litiga- 
tion of causes, in the adjustment of disputed rights, 
in the determination of guilt or innocence. Its scene 
is the court-house. It is, in style, clear, direct, and 
logical. It deals in law and evidence, sifts and weighs 
testimony, and labors every way to convince the un- 
derstanding. In short, its appeal is to the head, its 
aim the administration of justice. 

The deliberative is that which is employed where 
propositions, after being duly discussed, are finally to 
be adopted or rejected, according to the pleasure of 
the assembly. It differs from the demonstrative and 
the judicial, both in the end which it seeks, and the 
means which it employs for the attainment of that 
end. 

The demonstrative, as before intimated, begins and 
ends in display. It abounds in ornament ; it awakens 
emotion ; it delights the imagination ; it exhibits the 
virtues of its subject, but no less exhibits the resources 
of rhetoric and the talents of the orator. But here its 
mission closes. It looks to no definite resulting action 
in the body addressed. 

The judicial, unlike the demonstrative, avoids every 
appearance of show, or endeavor. It relies upon facts, 
evidence, positive statute ; counts little upon appeals 
to the emotional nature ; but demands a verdict, not 



14 WHAT IS A GOOD DEBATER? 

as a favor, but as a right, not as being expedient, but 
as being nothing more than what is just. 

The deliberative differs from the demonstrative, in 
laboring to sway the opinions of the audience, and to 
secure a vote in favor of what it claims to be best. It 
differs from the judicial, in recognizing in the body- 
addressed a perfect freedom of choice. The demon- 
strative deals with our affections ; the judicial appeals 
to our judgment of right and wrong ; the deliberative 
calls for the exercise of wisdom in relation to what is 
useful, what is expedient, what is best to be done. 

The occasions for the use of deliberative eloquence 
are now more numerous and important than they ever 
have been in any previous age of the world. Wherever 
the will of the people is the law of the land, wherever 
republican principles prevail to any considerable extent, 
there deliberative assemblies must often be convened. 

In our own country, accordingly, they abound in 
every quarter, and consider every topic of common 
interest. The Congress of the United States is a de- 
liberative assembly. The Legislatures of the several 
States are deliberative assemblies. Every town meet- 
ing, every county gathering, every State or National 
Convention, every association of persons, whatever the 
purposes of the association, constitutes a deliberative 
assembly. In all these, propositions are submitted for 
consideration, discussed with freedom, and received, 
or rejected, according to the will of the body. 

The variety of interests involved in the transactions 
of bodies of this nature, and the necessity of preventing 
party sway and hasty action, render it important for 
every one to be ready to exert a wholesome influence in 



WHAT IS A GOOD DEBATER? 15 

their deliberations. Few men, comparatively, ever have 
opportunity or inclination to exercise their talents in 
the composition and delivery of set orations or lectures 
adapted to particular times and occasions. But to 
speak in a deliberative assembly, to enlighten and 
sway the minds of men engaged in the consideration 
of momentous affairs, may be the lot of every one. 
Hence, every man owes it to the community in which 
he lives, no less than to his own honor and interest, to 
fit himself, as far as may be, to discharge this most im- 
portant duty. 

From this brief survey of the nature and extent of 
deliberative eloquence, may easily be inferred the 
qualifications proper to be sought by him who aspires 
to the character of a good debater. 

In certain general qualities he must, of course, share 
with the orator in every other field of oratory. He 
must, for example, be accounted an upright man ; for 
otherwise his arguments, however forcible, his illustra- 
tions however clear, his delivery however graceful, 
will all suffer under the withering influence of a want 
of confidence. Integrity of character is, indeed, the 
capital quality — the "wisdom better than rubies ; and 
all things that may be desired are not to be compared 
with it." 

He must have the requisite natural gifts, and these 
must be cultivated with care and assiduity ; for no 
fertility of genius, no powers of voice, no volubility 
of tongue, no grace of gesture, can ever atone for the 
absence of culture and discipline. Labor is the price 
of eminence in the fields of eloquence, as in every 
other honorable vocation. 



16 WHAT IS A GOOD DEBATER? 

He must have fall control of himself, and a becom- 
ing respect for the feelings of others ; for whatever 
may be the honesty of his intentions, the discipline of 
his intellectual powers, the treasures of his mind, or 
the fascinations of his oratory, if his temper be bad, 
his manner assuming, or his tone dictatorial, his success, 
in any and every line of speaking, must be seriously 
hindered. There is a mysterious charm in good na- 
ture, a certain irresistible attraction in every evidence 
of modesty, benevolence, and forbearance, which, in a 
public assembly, is often found more effective far than 
the most commanding talents. 

But, in addition to those general qualifications 
which the good debater has in common with genuine 
orators of every description, there are others that be- 
long peculiarly to his position and circumstances. 
Several of these, being the most important, we shall 
here specify and commend to the reader's attention. 

1. He must, then, first and last, always endeavor to 
gain the good will of his audience : remembering, that 
persuasion is the only power at his command, and that 
the will of the assembly is the ultimate tribunal. In 
orations of the demonstrative kind, the orator may, with 
no little confidence, put his trust in wit, in humor, in 
mere novelty, in beauty and sublimity of thought, in fe- 
licities of diction and in graceful postures and attitudes ; 
for his hearers are, for the most part, in a mood to be 
pleased, and are not to be called upon by a decisive 
vote to determine the merits of his performance. In 
speeches of the judicial kind, the speaker is fully 
justified in relying solely upon the making out of his 
case. If that which is alleged, is fully proved, he is 



WHAT IS A GOOD DEBATER? 17 

entitled to a verdict in favor of his client, and neither 
judge nor jury have either right or power to deny it. 

But it is not so in deliberative bodies. The delib- 
erative orator often addresses those who are well, or ill 
affected towards a cause, because they are well, or ill 
affected towards him who advocates it. And, since it 
is altogether optional with them to adopt, or reject 
what he recommends, it is of the utmost importance, 
that he should not lose the influence that ever accom- 
panies a speaker who is regarded with kindness by his 
auditory. 

2. He should be quick to discern those motives 
most likely to sway his auditors ; otherwise his ap- 
peals will be powerless, because misdirected. There 
is a passage in the dialogue between Cicero and his 
son, quite pertinent to the present occasion, which, 
says a great and good man,* " I recommend, as the 
truly paternal advice of a father to his child." The 
passage is this : " The discourse must be accommo- 
dated, not only to the truth, but to the taste of the 
hearers. Observe, then, first of all, that there are two 
different descriptions of men ; the one rude and ig- 
norant, who always set profit before honor ; the other 
polished and civilized, who prefer honor to every- 
thing. Urge, then, to the latter of these classes con- 
siderations of praise, of honor, of glory, of fidelity, 
of justice; in short, of every virtue. To the former 
present images of gain, of emolument, of thrift ; nay, 
in addressing this kind of men, you must even allure 
them with the bait of pleasure. Pleasure, always hos- 
tile to virtue, always corrupting, by fraudulent imita- 

* John Qumcy Adams, 



18 WHAT IS A GOOD DEBATER? 

tion, the very nature of goodness herself, is yet most 
eagerly pursued by the worst of men ; and by them 
often preferred not only to every instigation of honor, 
but even to the dictates of necessity. Kemember, too, 
that mankind are more anxious to escape evil, than to 
obtain good ; less eager to acquire honor, than to avoid 
shame. Who ever sought honor, glory, praise, or 
fame of any kind, with the same ardor that we fly 
from those most cruel of afflictions, ignominy, con- 
tumely, and scorn ? Again ; there is a class of men, 
naturally inclined to honorable sentiments, but cor- 
rupted by evil education and vitiated opinions. Is it 
your purpose, then, to exhort or persuade, remember 
that the task before you is that of teaching how to ob- 
tain good, and eschew evil. Are you speaking to 
men of liberal education, enlarge upon topics of praise 
and honor ; insist with the keenest earnestness upon 
those virtues which contribute to the common safety 
and advantage of mankind. But, if you are discours- 
ing to gross, ignorant, untutored minds, to them hold 
up profit, lucre, money -making, pleasure, and escape 
from pain. Deter them, also, by the prospect of shame 
and ignominy; for no man, however insensible to 
positive glory, is made of such impenetrable stuff, as 
not to be vehemently moved by the dread of infamy 
and disgrace." 

To the same end, Quinctilian observes : " Now, there 
is no difficulty in persuading the virtuous to follow 
virtuous measures. But, if we are to plead for such 
measures before men of abandoned principles, we are 
carefully to avoid all appearance of reproaching them 
for the contrariety that there is between the measures 



WHAT IS A GOOD DEBATER? 19 

and their character. For we are not then to think of 
winning their assent by expatiating upon the beauty 
of virtue, which never comes into the thoughts of such 
men ; but we are to work upon them by the glory and 
the popularity that will attend their pursuing such a 
measure ; and, if they look upon those but as empty 
sounds, we are then to lay before them the great profit 
which will thereby arise to themselves, and to mag- 
nify the dangers which may attend their doing other- 
wise. For the more worthless man is, the more sus- 
ceptible he is of fear ; nay, I am not sure whether the 
generality of mankind are not more influenced by 
the dread of danger than the hope of advantage ; so 
much more easily and naturally is mankind in gen- 
eral struck with the notion of what is mean, than of 
what is noble." 

In acting upon this advice of the great Eoman orator, 
and the scarcely less great Eoman Rhetorician, it need 
hardly be said, since the limitation will be obvious from 
the nature of the case, that the young orator is not ad- 
vised to appeal to the motives of his hearers, whether 
high or low, in order to urge upon them what is 
wrong, but that having what he believes to be a good 
object, he may appeal to any and every suitable mo- 
tive to influence men to seek that object. 

3. He should be a man of general intelligence. 
This is true undoubtedly of orators in every line; 
but the- remark has peculiar force and significance, 
when made in reference to him who desires to figure 
well in a deliberative assembly. 

If we consider the multiplicity and diversity of the 
subjects acted upon in bodies of this kind, we can 



20 WHAT IS A" GOOD DEBATER? 

hardly estimate the importance of wide general infor- 
mation in a debater. With him no kind, or item of 
knowledge, is withont a practical value. To-day he 
may be in a village meeting, discussing the expe- 
diency of making a road or building a bridge; to- 
morrow in a convention, arguing the propriety or im- 
propriety of a change in the constitution of the State. 
Now he is busy among the friends of education, as- 
sembled to consider the ways and means of improving 
the moral and intellectual condition of the masses; 
now he is in some ecclesiastical synod, or council, or 
convocation, exchanging counsels on matters of high 
religious concernment ; and now, again, perchance in 
Congress, debating questions of law, of tariff, of rev- 
enue, of treaties, of peace, of war, and I know not 
what all. 

To him therefore, what knowledge or learning can 
be otherwise than exceedingly useful ? To him history 
is indeed " philosophy teaching by examples ;" yield- 
ing him arguments, facts, and illustrations, always in- 
teresting and often irresistible. To him not only is 
that history useful, which is embodied in permanent 
and well-digested records, but that, also, which is found 
in the passing events and transactions of the great liv- 
ing world around him. With him, in a sense singu- 
larly significant, " knowledge is power." 

4. He should aim at simplicity of style, clearness of 
logic, and earnestness of manner. He may not discard 
ornament, when it comes naturally, but he is never to 
be found in search of it. His task is simply to show 
that something is to be sought, because it is useful, or 
that something is to be avoided, because it is deleterious. 



WHAT IS A GOOD DEBATER? 21 

The debater, therefore, must speak plainly, earnestly, 
feelingly ; he must argue in the manner of a friend, 
intent upon guarding his neighbor against coming 
evil, or anxious to secure to him some blessing within 
the reach of effort. 

In relation to the thought, he cannot be too careful ; 
in relation to the mere wording of his thoughts, he must 
not seem over-anxious. If he is familiar with his 
theme, he will most probably be fluent in discussing 
it, and fluency of speech is what especially he needs. 
But fluency is not finery. 

When the subject and the occasion conspire, as often 
they will, to render the use of ornate diction and fig- 
ures of speech appropriate and effective, the delibera- 
tive orator is at liberty to rise with his topic and soar 
in the regions of beauty and sublimity. But let him 
beware of what is called beauty and sublimity of lan- 
guage, where there is no underlying beauty and sub- 
limity of thought. 

5. He should endeavor to have his thoughts and 
feelings so absorbed in his theme, as to free his deliv- 
ery from every appearance of being studied and artifi- 
cial. He that fully understands and ardently feels the 
force of what he is saying, will seldom be in danger 
of employing false tones and emphases, or awkward 
and inappropriate gestures. In these things nature is 
the best guide. 

It will not be understood from this, that we would 
discourage all attention to vocal modulation, to just- 
ness of pronunciation, to proper gesticulation, and 
whatever else may constitute the requisites of a grace- 



22 WHAT IS A GOOD DEBATER? 

ful delivery. These are things which, in every con 
siderate mind, will always have their due weight. 

But the error against which we would earnestly 
caution the young speaker, is that of withdrawing his 
attention, while speaking, from his subject to himself, 
busying his mind with the probable effect of his tones 
or his attitudes, when he ought to be dealing heartily 
with those emotions and sentiments on which, and on 
which alone, a truly natural delivery depends. 

In this connection, we cannot resist the disposition to 
introduce an extract from a writer, whose opinion in 
a matter like this, is entitled to the highest considera- 
tion. It will serve equally for instruction and for en- 
couragement. " He," (says Whately, the able and elo- 
quent Archbishop of Dublin,) " who shall determine to 
aim at the natural manner, though he will have to 
contend with considerable difficulties and discourage- 
ments, will not be without corresponding advantages, 
in the course he is pursuing. He will be at first, in- 
deed, repressed to a greater degree than another by 
emotions of bashfulness ; but it will be more speedily 
and more completely subdued ; the very system pur- 
sued, since it forbids all thoughts of self, striking at the 
root of the evil. He will, indeed, on the outset, incur 
censure, not only critical, but moral ; he will be blamed 
for using a colloquial delivery; and the censure will 
very likely be, as far as relates to his earliest efforts, 
not wholly undeserved ; for his manner will probably 
at first too much resemble that of conversation, though 
of serious and earnest conversation ; but by persever- 
ance he may be sure of avoiding deserved, and of mit- 
igating, and ultimately overcoming, undeserved censure. 



WHAT IS A GOOD DEBATER? 23 

" He will, indeed, never be praised for a ' very fine 
delivery;' but bis matter will not lose tbe approbation 
it may deserve ; as be will be tbe more sure of being 
beard and attended to. He will not, indeed, meet 
witb many wbo can be regarded as models of tbe nat- 
ural manner ; and tbose be does meet witb, be will be 
precluded, by tbe nature of tbe system, from minutely 
imitating ; but be will bave tbe advantage of carrying 
w r itbin bim an infallible guide, as long as be is careful 
to follow tbe suggestions of nature ; abstaining from all 
tbougbts respecting bis own utterance, and fixing bis 
mind intently on tbe business be is engaged in. 

" And tbougb be must not expect to attain perfec- 
tion at once, be may be assured tbat, wbile be steadily 
adberes to tbis plan, be is in tbe right road to it ; in- 
stead of becoming, as on the other plan, more and 
more artificial the longer be studies. And every ad- 
vance be makes will produce a proportional effect ; it 
will give bim more and more of that hold on the at- 
tention, the understanding, and the feelings of the au- 
dience, which no studied modulation can ever attain. 
Others, indeed, may be more successful in escaping 
censure, and ensuring admiration ; but be will far more 
surpass them in respect of the proper object of the 
orator, which is, to carry his point ." 

6. The next special qualification for a good debater, 
here to be mentioned, is perfect famibarity witb tbe 
rules of parliamentary practice. The necessity of such 
a code of laws is apparent from the nature of the case, 
and the wisdom of those now generally in force is 
fully attested by tbe voice of experience. 

It not unfrequently happens, that the most import- 



24 WHAT IS A GOOD DEBATER? 

ant advantages in the management of a question are 
entirely lost through the speaker's ignorance of some 
form of procedure, or the operation and effect of some 
rule of order. 

In the event of one's being elected to preside over 
the deliberations of a meeting or society, nothing can 
exceed the wasting, exhausting, mortifying process of 
laboring to govern and direct without knowing how. 

On the contrary, if qualified in this respect, whether 
he figure on the floor in the capacity of a debater, or 
occupy the chair of the presiding officer, the order of 
proceeding, being fully understood, is made subservient 
to its legitimate purposes, the dignity of the assembly 
is duly maintained, and the interests at stake in the 
discussion carefully protected and promoted. 

7. Last of all, as, indeed, first of all, he must be a 
good extemporaneous speaker. This, in fact, has all 
along been implied, and is absolutely essential to the 
character of a good debater. 

Let no one, however, on this account be discouraged ; 
as though nature had thrown in his way obstacles in- 
surmountable. Excellency of speech is no exclusive 
gift of genius ; but always, more or less, the fruit of 
practice. This fact is so important as to call for a sepa- 
rate consideration, and, accordingly, the following Sec- 
tion is devoted to that subject alone. 



SECTION III. 

EXTEIPOKANEOUS SPEAKING. 

nn"WO opinions, equally plausible and equally errone- 
-*- ous, are entertained in relation to extemporaneous 
speaking. One is, that this power, wherever possessed, 
in any eminent degree, is the peculiar gift of nature, 
and, therefore, absolutely unattainable, except by a 
favored few. The other is, that whether natural or 
acquired, confined to a few, or accessible to all, its fre- 
quent exercise is not only attended with no adequate 
benefit, but is, generally speaking, a positive injury ; 
since it generates in the speaker himself habits unfa- 
vorable to close thinking and accurate composition. 

The error underlying the first of these opinions seems 
to be, that of confounding two things essentially dis- 
tinct — thinking and speaking. He that carefully attends 
to the operations of his own mind, will not be long in 
discovering, that when he speaks confusedly and ob- 
scurely, there is in his thoughts, at the time, a corre- 
spondent want of order and clearness. 

This confusion and obscurity of thought may be due 
to a variety of causes. It is not always traceable to 
ignorance of the subject, to want of premeditation, or 

2 



26 EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING. 

to an ill-disciplined mind ; though these will be found 
to be the real causes of almost all abortive attempts at 
extemporaneous speaking. 

Many a man who has a complete mastery of his sub- 
ject, and who, in the retirement of his study, would 
readily clothe his thoughts upon it in appropriate and 
even elegant language, finds in the mere presence of a 
numerous audience an overpowering cause of derange- 
ment in his ideas, and a consequent inability to deliver 
a connected discourse. This result is sometimes expe- 
rienced from the presence of particular individuals 
whom we dread as critics, sometimes from a contempt- 
uous bearing in our opponents,* sometimes from an 
overweening vanity in the speaker himself, rendering 
him over-solicitous about the appearance he is making 
in the assembly, sometimes — But further enumera- 
tion is unnecessary. It is enough that the sources of 

* A striking instance of this kind is recorded of Lord Erskine. 
In the commencement of his maiden speech in the House of Com- 
mons, " Pitt," says Croly in his Life of George IV., " evidently in- 
tending to reply, sat with pen and paper in his hand, prepared to 
catch the arguments of his formidable adversary. He "wrote a word 
or two. Erskine proceeded ; but, with every additional sentence, 
Pitt's attention to the paper relaxed, his look became more careless, 
and he obviously began to think the orator less and less worthy of 
his attention. At length, while every eye in the House was fixed 
upon him, with a contemptuous smile he dashed the pen through the 
paper, and flung them on the floor. Erskine never recovered from 
this expression of disdain ; his voice faltered, he struggled through 
the remainder of his speech, and sank into his seat dispirited." 

Thus Erskine, an orator of pre-eminent ability at the bar, whom 
talents of the highest order in an opponent would rather have en- 
couraged than disheartened, was utterly disconcerted by the power 
of contempt. 



EXTEHPOKANEOUS SPEAKING. 27 

failure in all these and similar cases, lie, not in the ab- 
sence of natural endowment, but in causes quite re- 
movable by care, study and effort. 

In asserting, however, that the power of extempor- 
izing is the gift, not of a few only, but rather of the race 
generally, we are, by no means, to be understood as 
affirming the natural equality of all mankind in this 
respect. Indeed, the great ^equality found among men, 
in facility of expression, is what gives plausibility to 
the opinion, that while some few possess it in a high 
degree, to the many it is altogether denied. 

What we hold is, that all are, by nature, in possess- 
ion of this faculty ; that it is, nevertheless, more prom- 
inent in some than in others ; but that, like all other 
faculties, it is capable of indefinite improvement. 
What a man understands and as he understands, he 
will be able to express ; whether gracefully or awk- 
wardly, forcibly or feebly, elegantly or otherwise, de- 
pends more upon previous culture and discipline than 
upon any natural endowments whatever. 

The history of eloquence, in all ages and countries, 
teems with examples in favor of the position, that not 
only the power of extemporaneous speech, but all the 
other qualities engaged in the composition of a genu- 
ine orator, derive their perfection from study and 
practice. Such was the confidence of the celebrated 
Grorgias Leontinus in the efficacy of mental training, as 
the means of forming a fluent speaker, that he did not 
hesitate to pledge himself to qualify his pupils to speak 
extemporaneously on any subject whatever. 

Undoubtedly his pretensions were too high. Doubt- 
less he deserved much of the ridicule heaped upon 



28 EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING. 

him by Plato. But, after all, we must remember, that 
he was a man of extraordinary ability, that Plato was 
his rival, and, moreover, that both in Khetoric, which un- 
folds the principles, and in Oratory, which displays the 
practice of speaking well, he was confessedly pre-emi- 
nent. His testimony, therefore, in the matter under con- 
sideration, must be regarded as decidedly valuable.* 

The toils and trials of Demosthenes in the effort to 
overcome the obstacles lying in his way to oratorical 
eminence, are familiar to every reader of ancient histo- 
ry. What he did, and what he suffered, and what, 
finally, he came to be, in consequence of thus doing 
and suffering, taken all together, serve admirably to 
show, among other things, the true source of skill in ex- 
temporaneous speaking. Demosthenes was, indeed, for 
the most part, laborious in his preparations ; so much 
so as to elicit from Pytheas, one of his rivals, and from 
others, the taunting remark, that " all his arguments 
smelled of the lamp. v -\ But, when the occasion demand- 

* None of the early rhetoricians had a wider reputation than Gor- 
gias. Among his pupils was the celebrated Isocrates ; from whose 
school, says Cicero, as from the Trojan horse, issued a host of heroes. 
When sent by his countrymen, the Leontinians, at the head of an 
embassy, to seek the alliance of Athens against the encroachments of 
Syracuse, Gorgias so charmed the Athenians by the power of his 
eloquence, that he found no difficulty in securing the end of his mis- 
sion. All Greece, it is said, united in erecting a golden statue of 
him in the temple at Delphi. 

f It is recorded of Demosthenes by his distinguished biographer, 
that he held it to be a duty which he owed to the people, not, as a 
general thing, to undertake to address them, without duly consider- 
ing beforehand what he should say. Of Pericles, also, the same wri- 
ter says, that " such was his solicitude, when he had to speak in pub- 
lic, that he always first addressed a prayer to the gods, ' that not a 
word might unawares escape him unsuitable to the occasion.' " The 



EXTEMPOKANEOUS SPEAKING. 29 

ed, lie had a' habit of mind, derived from the severe disci- 
pline to which it had been subjected, which enabled him, 
upon the spur of the moment, " to speak," says Plu- 
tarch, " as from a supernatural impulse," and equally to 
delight and instruct by his extemporaneous effusions. 

In modern times, also, numerous cases have occurred 
in which, after decided failures in the first attempts at 
extemporaneous discourse, men have, by resolution 
and perseverance, equally surprised themselves and 
their friends in the success which has attended their 
efforts in this direction. It is well known that even 
Sheridan, from whom so much was expected, on ac- 
count of the brilliancy of his career in another sphere, 
came, in his first speech in the House of Commons, 
amazingly short of those anticipations that had been 
raised in relation to the figure he would make in a 
deliberative assembly. But his reply to Woodfall, 
whose opinion he had solicited respecting the merit of 
this his first attempt, and who frankly told him, " I 
don't think this is your line: you had better have stuck to 
your former pursuits" is one that announces, with pe- 
culiar force, the truth which we are here anxious to 
impress. "It is in me," said he, "and it shall come 
out of me !" And come out of him it did ; for at it he 
went, with something of Demosthenian spirit, and his 
perseverance was ultimately crowned with something 
of Demosthenian success. 

This declaration and resolution of Sheridan, so 
briefly and so forcibly expressed, should arrest the at- 

conduct of these great men, in this respect, is, or ought to be, not a 
little instructive. Especially should it be remembered, that their 
solicitude was chiefly about the thoughts, not about the words. 



30 EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING. 

tention of every young man, who finds himself vacil- 
lating between hope and fear in his aspirations after 
oratorical ability. Let him accept, with unwavering 
faith, the doctrine taught in the first clause, — " It'is in 
me ; " let him take with cool deliberation the resolve 
expressed in the second, — "and it shall come out of 
me ;" and, thereafter, let neither zeal flag, nor energy 
fail, nor perseverance yield, till that which is within, 
shall have shown itself without in the form of a ready 
and effective debater. 

In relation to the second opinion, cited at -fee com- 
mencement of this section, and there pronounced er- 
roneous, it should, in the outset, be observed, that 
whatever influence extemporaneous speaking may be 
supposed to have in producing habits of indolence, or 
inaccuracy, it is certain that the practice of writing out 
discourses beforehand is no necessary safeguard against 
these unfortunate tendencies. He that is habitually 
careful and diligent, is not likely to have his habits 
broken up, but rather strengthened by the exercise of 
his powers, as an extemporaneous orator ; while he, in 
whom carelessness and idleness have fixed their abode, 
has in him two evil spirits, too powerful to be exor- 
cised by the mere practice of penmanship. 

"Written speeches ought, we should say, to give in- 
fallible evidence always of care and assiduity ; but he 
is certainly a listless looker-on in any of the various 
fields of public speaking, who is not often forced to 
wonder how people who evidently think so loosely 
and so lazily, can ever prevail upon themselves to 
undergo the mechanical exertion necessary to write 
out a speech. Men often write what is not worth writ- 



EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING. 31 

ing, just as they often speak what is not worth speak- 
ing. 

Extemporaneous speaking is not, therefore, to be 
discouraged, because some persons seem, by the prac- 
tice of it, to acquire habits of idleness and carelessness 
in the matter of literary composition. Eather let it 
be the more earnestly cultivated, in order to the avoid- 
ance of these very evils ; for, when well executed, it 
assuredly argues higher and better culture, and conse- 
quently, greater industry and accuracy, than belongs, 
or ever^an belong, to the race of literary drones. 

But the opinion which we are here combating, how- 
ever erroneous, is certainly plausible. Its plausibility, 
moreover, is due, undoubtedly, to the experienced fact, 
that those speakers who are in the habit of seeking 
improvement in the power of expression, by exercising 
themselves often in written composition, are always 
found to be the most ready and effective extemporizers. 
This testimony in favor of the influence of written 
upon oral exercises in composition, we cheerfully ac- 
cept, and cannot find language strong enough to com- 
mend it to those who are ambitious to excel as de- 
baters ; for we are here only guarding people against 
the error of supposing that, because writing conduces, 
in the highest degree, to accuracy in composition, 
that, therefore, extemporaneous speaking is to be re- 
linquished altogether. Indeed, one of the most val- 
uable precepts for the acquisition of skill in extempo- 
rizing, as we shall presently see, is systematic practice 
in reducing our thoughts to writing. 

But our object, in this part of the present work, is 
not so much to consider and refute objections to the 



32 EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING. 

practice of declaiming extemporaneously, as to offer 
suitable directions for the cultivation of that useful art. 
We hasten, therefore, to direct attention to the follow- 
ing precepts ; not, however, as embracing every item 
of instruction applicable to the case, but simply as em- 
bodying the most prominent and available guidance 
in this line of intellectual exertion. 

In delivering these instructions, it is of course as- 
sumed, that the party receiving them has an earnest 
desire to become a good extemporaneous speaker, and 
is, therefore, willing and ready, as far as may be prac- 
ticable, to follow them out in a spirit of zeal and per- 
severance. This is an indispensable preliminary to 
any sort of success in the matter ; for no idle aspira- 
tions, no lazy wishes, unaccompanied by resolution 
and industry, can ever achieve a position worth occu- 
pying in the arena of public debate. 

The first rule which we shall here lay down, as con- 
ducive, if rightly followed, to skill in the use of ex- 
temporaneous language, is — Endeavor always to think 
clearly and methodically. 

Thinking and speaking, as before intimated, are 
things correlative. They stand in the relation of cause 
and effect. When, therefore, it is the settled habit of 
the mind to think in an orderly and perspicuous man- 
ner, it follows naturally that the tongue, which is under 
the guidance of the mind, should utter words in a cor- 
responding style. 

In order to the efficient application of this rule, let 
the young speaker often assume, as an intellectual 
gymnastic, some debatable subject for the exercise of 
his mental powers. Let him then deal with it as with 



EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING. 33 

a thing of reality, a question of real life. Let him ac- 
quire an interest, an enthusiasm, if possible, in its 
management. Let him survey it as a whole, study it in 
detail, detect its deficiencies, bring out its excellencies, 
and hold it up to the light in all possible aspects. Let 
him consider in how many ways the point which he 
wishes to make can be presented and defended, and, 
among these, which is the most likely to be fully un- 
derstood, and fairly appreciated. 

When all this is done in the mind, let him try the 
experiment of putting the whole process into extem- 
poraneous language. The result will be the measure 
of his proficiency in the art ; and, if rightly regarded, 
cannot fail, at every repetition of the exercise, to prove 
a healthful stimulus to renewed exertion. 

The second rule is — Be in the constant habit of seeking 
the best possible language for the expression of your ideas, 
even in ordinary conversation. 

As the best school of practical morals is the society 
of moral people, so the best exercise in oral expression 
is conversation with refined and educated persons. 
The converse of this statement is also painfully true. 
" Evil communications corrupt good manners," says 
the Apostle ; and some one has aptly added — u and 
good language top /" 

He, therefore, who aims to be a good deliberative 
orator, must be ever equally on the alert to catch what 
is choice and correct, and to avoid what is vulgar and 
inaccurate, in his daily intercourse with others. It is 
not enough to exercise particular care on particular oc- 
casions. It must be a thing of habit, growing out of a 
settled purpose to be superior in the power of speech. 

2* 



34 EXTEMPOKANEOUS SPEAKING. 

The third rule is — Bead often and carefully the best 
specimens of deliberative eloquence. 

An intelligent application of this rule requires that 
the student should become familiar with many particu- 
lars bearing upon what he reads. "What is the precise 
nature of the proposition which the speaker advocates 
or opposes ? What are his own personal relations to 
it ? What is the character or constitution of the body 
whom he addresses? What the time, the place, the 
circumstances, wherein the speech was delivered ? 
All these and other kindred inquiries he should make, 
in order to put himself duly in sympathy with the par- 
ties originally and really interested in the case. 

Then let him observe accurately the speech itself ; 
its opening, the order and relative force of the several 
arguments adduced, the skill displayed in evading or 
obviating objections, the pertinency of the illustrations, 
the facility and naturalness of the transitions from one 
topic to another, the closing remarks or peroration, 
and, throughout the whole, every grace and every ele- 
gance in the structure of individual sentences or pas- 
sages. 

The fourth rule is — Exercise your powers often in the 
practice of written composition. 

" Writing," says Lord Bacon, " makes an accurate 
man," and this is the testimony of every scholar. The 
rule, however, which we are now commending, has 
several modes of application. If the student is ac- 
quainted with any language other than his vernacular, 
one of the easiest applications of the present rule is 
the translating of passages out of that foreign language 
into his own. Every sentence thus translated is an ex- 



EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING. 35 

ercise, however brief, in English composition ; a fact 
which accounts for the greater facility in the use of 
language, which boys who have studied, even for com- 
paratively short periods of time, the Latin and Greek 
languages, than is found in the possession of those 
who are without that advantage. 

He, however, who knows no other than his native 
tongue, may adopt, with the greatest benefit, a custom, 
commended and adopted by Cicero and other great 
speakers, in their youth, — that of reading carefully a 
passage from some great oration or other literary com- 
position, getting the substance of it fairly in the mem- 
ory, and then putting it again into language the best 
you can command. There is, also, another way of 
reaching the result contemplated in this exercise, 
which the author of these observations has often found 
singularly efficient, in the prosecution of his duties as 
a practical educator. It is simply to place before the 
learner a given passage from a writer of established 
reputation, and then to require him to express, in 
words other than those of the author, the same idea ; 
that is, neither more nor less than what is found in 
the passage assigned. This is an admirable method 
of acquiring precision of style, on which depends, in 
great measure, every other excellence of composition. 

But a higher application of the present rule for the 
cultivation of skill in speaking, is that which obliges 
the young orator to engage frequently in the practice 
of original composition. In this, if he would be pro- 
ficient, he must study to bring into actual and appro- 
priate use those essential principles and precepts which, 
under the imposing names of Grammar and Ehetoric, 



36 EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING-. 

all terminate at last in justifying that brief definition 
of a good style, — " proper words in proper places." 

By the due application of this rule, whether in one 
or in all of the ways above indicated, the mind be- 
comes habituated to close and accurate thinking, fa- 
miliar with various forms of expression, and ready, 
when the occasion demands, to display its resources in 
fluent and forceful language. 

The fifth and last general rule which we shall here 
give for acquiring superiority in extemporaneous 
speaking, is — Be always diligent in the acquisition of 
knowledge. 

The aim of this rule is especially to reach the case 
of those who, relying upon a certain natural readiness 
of utterance, are but too apt to fall into the deplorable 
habit of undertaking to speak without having any- 
thing in particular to say. He that fails from this 
cause, deserves to fail ; for he equally deceives him- 
self and his audience ; mistaking sound for sense, and 
raising expectations which he is not able to satisfy. 
A glib tongue in an empty head is no common calam- 
ity. 

There is no kind of knowledge, as before intimated, 
which may not be useful to the deliberative speaker. 
Such is the variety of the questions which he may 
find it necessary or desirable to discuss, that no mental 
treasures, however extensive or diversified, can exceed 
the limits of his actual wants. 

It was no mere fancy that led the ancients to adopt 
the principle, that the genuine orator should be com- 
petently acquainted with every department of knowl- 
edge. Not that, even in their day, the orator could be 



EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING. 37 

expected to be a man of universal knowledge, in any 
such sense as includes and necessitates a minute and 
profound acquaintance with all the various and com- 
plicated branches of human learning. This, if not 
then, certainly now, would be quite out of human 
power ; but there is an important sense in which this 
theory of universal culture is unquestionably true. 
Let the standard be high, whatever may be our defi- 
ciencies in reaching it. 

The perfect orator is, indeed, the rarest of human 
characters. It is seldom, in the lapse of ages, that all 
those qualities that must conspire to produce this char- 
acter are found to unite in a single individual. In 
voice, in person, in genius, in knowledge, in fluency, 
in everything that can influence the eye, the ear, the 
heart, or the head, he must be pre-eminent. 

Few, therefore, very few, can ever hope to attain to 
the glory of being perfect orators ; but all, or nearly 
all, by persevering and judicious practice, may become 
ready and efficient speakers. 

" But," as is well observed by an eminent writer,* 
already quoted, " no man ought to place such confi- 
dence in his own abilities as to hope to rise to the 
highest pitch of reputation by his first efforts. For 
our extemporary powers of speaking must rise by de- 
grees, from inconsiderable beginnings to perfection. 
And this can neither be acquired nor maintained without 
practice." 

* Quinetillian. 



SECTION IV. 

RULES OF ORDER IN DELIBERATIVE ASSEMBLIES. 

rriHIS part of the present work embraces a pretty full 
-*- course of instruction in the Rules of Order ob- 
served in deliberative assemblies. For reasons else- 
where* assigned, these rules deservedly claim the most 
careful attention. 

They are, indeed, of almost universal applicability ; 
but (as stated on page 41) are often, by special rules, 
altered, modified, or superseded, in certain points, to 
answer the demands of particular organizations. 

In this part of the subject, moreover, we have 
adopted the mode of question and answer. This has 
been done, partly, because it seemed more likely to 
elicit attention, and, partly, because, where the work 
is employed as a text-book, such an arrangement can 
hardly fail to prove highly convenient and useful. 

Those who may wish merely to refer to particular 
points, in this or any other part of the work, will be 
able readily to reach their object, by means of the In- 
dex at the end, which has been made, expressly for 
that purpose, very full and minute. 

* See page 40. 



PRELIMINARY INSTRUCTIONS. 39 



PRELIMINARY INSTRUCTIONS. 

1. What is a deliberative assembly ? 

A deliberative assembly is an organized meeting of 
persons convened to consider and examine the reasons 
for and against measures and propositions submitted 
for their decision. 

2. What is meant by an " organized" meeting ? 

To organize is to form, or supply with the proper 
organs, that is, with the means or instruments of action ; 
and, when applied to an assemblage of persons gath- 
ered for deliberation, signifies to supply with suitable 
officers, and otherwise so to provide, that all the mem- 
bers may duly participate in the proceedings 

3. What officers are necessary for a deliberative as- 
sembly ? 

The officers necessary for a deliberative body are a 
Presiding Officer* and a Sepretary or Clerk ; but others 
may be appointed, according to the exigencies of the 
occasion, or the special nature of the organization. 
Thus, there may be one or more Vice-Presidents, one 

* The presiding officer in a deliberative body is variously de- 
nominated. In the Senate of the United States, he is the President ; 
in the House of Representatives, he is the Speaker ; in certain ec- 
clesiastical organizations, he is the Moderator ; in ordinary meet- 
ings, resulting from a published call, he is styled the Chairman. 
President is the name most comprehensive, and the one most com- 
monly employed in literary and other societies, in Boards of Man- 
agers, and in other similar organizations. 



40 RULES OF ORDER. 

or more additional Secretaries, a Corresponding Sec- 
retary and a Treasurer. 

4. Are the proceedings, in a deliberative assembly, con- 
ducted in accordance with any particular rules ? 

All business in deliberative bodies is transacted in 
conformity with certain rules and regulations, which, 
experience has shown to be fit and necessary for that 
purpose. These are called Kules of Order, 

5. What is the particular advantage of rules of order ? 
The object of a meeting for deliberation is, of course, 

to obtain a free expression of opinion, and a fair de- 
cision of the questions discussed. Without rules of 
order, this object would, in most cases, be utterly de- 
feated ; for there would be no uniformity in the modes 
of proceeding, no restraint upon, indecorous or disor- 
derly conduct, no protection to the rights and privi- 
leges of members, no guarantee against the caprices 
and usurpations of a presiding officer, no safeguard 
against tyrannical majorities, nor any suitable regard 
to the rights of a minority. 

6. Are the rules of order alike in all deliberative as- 
semblies ? 

The rules of order in our National Congress are es- 
sentially the same as those in force in the British Par- 
liament; being, in fact, mainly derived from that 
source. There are, however, important differences; 
growing chiefly out of differences in government and 
institutions. 

The rules of order in our State Legislatures are sub- 



PRELIMINARY INSTRUCTIONS. 41 

stantially the same as those adopted in the National 
Congress ; being, indeed, founded thereupon. But, as 
the rules in use in Congress differ, in some respects, 
from those established in Parliament, so those in the 
several State Legislatures differ, in some particulars, 
from those adopted in Congress. 

And again, as the rules in the several State Legis- 
latures differ, in some points, from .those in Congress, 
on which they are founded, so do they differ not 
unfrequently from one another; though in all the 
essentials of the common code, they are quite in har- 
mony. 

The rules of order in most other deliberative bodies 
in this country, are, in the main, the same with those 
in the National Congress or in the Slgtte Legislatures ; 
so that, in almost all fundamental points, there is great 
uniformity of practice. Hence, in allusion to the 
origin of the code of rules and regulations, thus gen- 
erally established, it is often called the common code 

Or PARLIAMENTARY LAW. 

7. Is it customary, in deliberative bodies, to adopt rules 
other than those embraced in this common code f 

It is not unusual for deliberative bodies of every 
kind, especially permanent organizations, to adopt, 
in addition to the common code, a series of special 
rules. These special rules, if, in any particular, they 
conflict with the ordinary parliamentary laws, always, 
so far as the body that adopts them is concerned, take 
the precedence. Where there is no special rule, there, 
of course, the common law is to be enforced. 



42 RULES OF ORDER. 

8. In what form are the acts of a deliberative assembly 
usually expressed '? 

The decisions or resolves of a deliberative assembly, 
which properly constitute their acts, are usually em- 
bodied and affirmed in formal declarations, called Res- 
olutions. 

These resolutions are on motion duly seconded, and 
stated from the chair, first freely discussed, and then 
decided affirmatively, or negatively by the meeting. 

9. What is meant by the phrase "on motion, duly 
seconded" ? 

Whenever a member wishes to get the sense, or 
judgment of the body on any given proposition, and, 
for that purpose^moves, or proposes its adoption, he is 
said to make a motion. 

To move a resolution, therefore, is simply to offer it 
for consideration. But it can never be entertained by 
the meeting, unless it so far finds favor, that some 
member other than the proposer, gives it his sanction 
by becoming his second. 

To second a motion, then, is to join with the pro- 
poser thereof, as his aid or second, in offering it to the 
consideration of the meeting. The party moving the 
resolution introduces it with, or without previous re- 
marks, by saying: " Mr. President, I beg leave to offer 
the following Resolution ;" which he then reads aloud. 
The party seconding, simply says : " / second that mo- 
tion." 

10. Are not the words " motion" and " resolution" 
often convertible terms? 

Motion, literally means the act of moving ; resolution, 



PRELIMINARY INSTRUCTIONS. 43 

the act of resolving ; but these words, like all others 
of the same formation, may signify, respectively, either 
the act of moving, or that which is moved, the act of 
resolving, or that which is resolved. Hence, since that 
which is moved, or proposed, in a deliberative body 
often proves identical with that which is resolved, 
these two words are generally regarded as synonymous. 
The distinction, however, between them deserves to be 
kept in mind, and it may further serve to impress it, 
if we remember, that while it is quite common and 
proper to say, " I move a resolution" it would be 
wholly inadmissible to reverse the terms and say, 
" / resolve a motion" * 

11. In what way or ways are decisions commonly made 
in a deliberative assembly f 

The decisions in a deliberative assembly are com- 
monly made by open vote ; often, also, by ballot. 

There is also another mode of taking the question^ 
which is called, taking the question by yeas and nays. 

12. What is the difference between a vote and a ballot f 
Vote, literally means a vow, wish or will. It is, 

* Mathias (Rules of Order, p* 44) mentions a distinction made 
in Legislative bodies between these two terms, which rests, as will 
be seen, essentially upon the original differences of import indicated 
in the text. He says : " Legislative bodies make a marked distinc- 
tion between resolutions and motions. The former are presumed to 
embrace matters of importance, and, after being read by the clerk, 
require a motion to ' proceed to a second reading and consider- 
ation.' Motions are of minor character, and relate generally to 
order in taking up business, or to some preparatory movements 
necessary for business. These do not require a second reading." 



44 EULES OF OEDEE. 

therefore, properly used to signify the choice, or pref- 
erence, which one may have along with others, in rela- 
tion to matters submitted for decision or persons pro- 
posed for office. This choice, or preference may be 
signified in different ways. It may be made viva voce 
(with the living voice) ; it may be made by raising 
the hand ; and, besides various other ways, by ballot 

Ballot, primarily, signifies a little ball ; and to vote by 
ballot is properly to signify one's choice by throwing 
into a box, urn, or other receptacle, a ball so colored, 
or otherwise marked, as to indicate an affirmative or 
negative vote. Instead of ballots, however, tickets, 
as being more convenient, are now generally used, 
though the process is still called by the same name. 

13. What proportion of the votes given in any case, is 
necessary to determine a question f 

The number of votes necessary to determine a ques- 
tion, where there is no special rule to the contrary, is 
always a majority. But, in certain cases, other pro- 
portions are required, as two-thirds or three-fourths ; 
or, as is sometimes the case, a mere plurality. 

14. What difference, in speaking of the result of a vote 
or election, is there between the terms majority and plu- 
rality f 

Majority signifies the greater part, that is, more than 
half. He, therefore, that is elected by a majority, is 
elected by more than half of all the votes cast. 

Plurality signifies a greater number ; that is (in the 
case, for example, of an election where there are more 
than two candidates), a number greater than that re- 



PEELIMINAEY INSTEUCTIONS. 45 

ceived by any other candidate, but less than half of 
the whole number of votes cast. Thus, a candidate 
may -have a plurality without having a majority ; 
but he cannot have a majority without having a plu- 
rality. 

15. Must a motion submitted for the decision of a delib- 
erative assembly, be oral or written f 

Every motion calling for special care and delibera- 
tion, that is, all important motions, should be in writ- 
ing ; but motions merely affecting the order of busi- 
ness, or other subordinate matters, are usually oral. 

16. What differences in meaning or application, if any, 
are found to obtain among the words u Voted" " Ordered, 1 " 1 
and "Resolved," when placed at the beginning of proposi- 
tions adopted by deliberate assemblies ? 

"Whatever proposition has been duly adopted by a 
deliberative assembly, thereby becomes the vote, order, 
or resolution of that assembly. The terms " Voted," 
" Ordered," and " Resolved," therefore, are in so far 
synonymous, as they all properly indicate what has 
been done or decided upon. 

" Resolved," however, is the term most generally 
used : " Voted" being employed, it is said, chiefly in 
the Eastern States, while " Ordered" is confined main- 
ly to religious organizations.* 

* Hatsell (quoted in Jefferson's Manual, section xxi.) says :— 
"When the House commands, it is " an order." But facts, princi- 
ples, their own opinions and purposes, are expressed in the form of 
resolutions. 



46 EULES OF OEDEE. 

17. Why and when is a proposition before a deliberative 
body called a question ? 

When, after due deliberation, a motion comes to be 
put to vote, that is, when the question of its acceptance 
or rejection is directly submitted to the assembly, it is, 
then and for that reason, called the question. 

18. What form is observed in submitting a question ? 

When the debate, or deliberation upon a subject ap- 
pears to be at a close, the presiding officer simply 
asks : " Is the assembly ready for the question f n 

If no one signifies a desire further to discuss or con- 
sider the subject, he then proceeds to submit the ques- 
tion thus : "As many as are in favor of the adoption of 
the Resolution, will signify it by saying l Aye /' " Then, 
pausing a moment to hear the response, he adds: 
" Those of the contrary opinion will say ' No /'" 

The answer on both sides being duly given, the 
President announces the result; saying, " The ayes have 
it" or " The noes have it" according as he finds the one 
or the other side in the majority. 

Should there seem to be any doubt about the result, 
the President should say : " The ayes appear to have 
it." If then no dissatisfaction is manifested, or no di- 
vision called for, he adds : " The ayes have it." 

19. Suppose, after the vote is given, the president is un- 
able to decide, or after he has announced the result, his de- 
cision is questioned, what should be done f 

Should the president, after putting the question, (if 
necessary a second time,) still be unable to decide, or 
should his decision, when announced, be brought into 



PRELIMINARY INSTRUCTIONS. 47 

question by a member rising in his place, and calling 
for a division of the house, his duty is immediately to 
so divide, or arrange the assembly as to allow the 
votes on each side to be accurately counted. 

This may be done by directing the ayes and the 
noes respectively to take different sides of the room ; 
or by first requesting the ayes to stand up in their 
places long enough to be numbered, and then calling 
upon the noes to do the same thing ; or by asking the 
ayes each to raise the right hand, and as soon as those 
have been counted, inviting the noes to signify their 
will in the like manner. 

Whatever method be adopted, the President is to 
count, or appoint tellers to count, the votes on each 
side respectively, and announce the true result to the 
assembly. 

20. Suppose the members are equally divided, what fol- 
lows ? 

If, on any question, the members are equally divid- 
ed, the President must give the casting, or determining 
vote. 

21. Has any member a right to refrain from voting f 
Every member present at the time when a question 

is duly submitted to the assembly for decision, is 
bound to give his vote for, or against the pending 
proposition.* 

22. What is meant by taking a question by the yeas 
and nays f 

It is sometimes thought proper to record the names 

* In some deliberative bodies, members are excused at their own 
request from voting ; but this is clearly against duty in the case. 



48 EULES OF OEDER. 

of members in connection with the votes they give for 
or against a proposition. In order to this, the ques- 
tion is thus stated : " As many as are in favor of the res- 
olution (or whatever it is) will, as their names are called, 
answer ' Yes ;' and as many as are opposed to it } will an- 
swer ' No. 1 " 

The roll is then called by the Clerk, or Secretary, and 
as each member answers yes, or no, the answer is noted 
or marked opposite his name ; and, to afford opportu- 
nity for the correction of mistakes, if any, the names 
of the voters on each side are again read over, and 
then the result is formally declared by the President. 
This is what is called taking a vote by yeas and 
nays* 

* The method of taking the yeas and nays in the House of Rep- 
resentatives in the State of Massachusetts, as described by Mr. Crush- 
ing, is so simple and so satisfactory, as to commend itself to every one. 
" The names of the members," says he, " being printed on a sheet, 
the clerk calls them in their order ; and, as each one answers, the 
clerk (responding to the member at the same time) places a figure 
in pencil, expressing the number of the answer, at the left or right 
of the name, according as the answer is yes or no ; so that the last 
figure or number, on each side, shows the number of the answers on 
that side ; and the two last numbers or figures represent the re- 
spective numbers of the affirmatives and negatives on the division. 
Thus, at the left hand of the name of the member who first answers 
yes, the clerk places a figure 1 ; at the right hand of the first mem- 
ber who answers no, he also places a figure 1 ; the second member 
that answers yes is marked 2 ; and so on to the end of the list ; the 
side of the name, on which the figure is placed, denoting whether 
the answer is yes or no, and the figure denoting the number of the 
answer on that side. The affirmatives and negatives are then read 
separately, if necessary, though this is usually omitted, and the 
clerk is then prepared, by means of the last figure on each side, 
to give the numbers to the Speaker to be announced to the 
House." 



PRELIMINARY INSTRUCTIONS. 49 

23. Is it in order to re-open the discussion after the vot- 
ing upon it has been commenced t 

A debatable question is always open for discussion 
in the assembly, both in the negative and the affirma- 
tive. And unless, therefore, the vote is taken by the 
yeas and nays, in which case both sides of the ques- 
tion are voted upon simultaneously, it is always in or- 
der, even after the affirmative has been put, to renew 
the debate. 

24. How can it affect the result to renew the discussion, 
seeing that one side has already voted f 

In case of a renewal of the debate after the affirma- 
tive has been put, the question, when again submitted, 
must be put both in the affirmative and the negative ; 
for the new discussion may have brought new light, 
and, besides, members not present before may have 
since entered, and so long as the question remains un- 
der debate, every one has a right to a vote one way or 
the other, as he pleases. 

25. Suppose a difficulty arises during a division on 
some point of order, as, for example, whether a member 
has a right to vote, how is the matter to be disposed off 

Should any difficulty on a point of order arise dur- 
ing a division, the President is to dispose of it by a 
peremptory decision ; such decision, if improper, be- 
ing afterwards subject to censure or correction.* 

* He sometimes, however, in such cases, avails himself of the ad- 
vice of experienced members ; they keeping their seats to avoid 
the appearance of debate. But all this is at the pleasure of the 
President ; otherwise the decision might be protracted beyond all 
reasonable bounds. See Jef. Manual, sec. xii., and Cushing, p. 131. 
3 



50 RULES OF ORDER. 

26. If ivhile a decision is going on, the number of mem- 
hers present falls below that required for a quorum, does 
that hinder the decision of the question f 

If, on a division, the result of the count shows that 
the whole number of votes is not equal to that requir- 
ed for a quorum, no decision can be had. In that 
event the matter to be decided, remains just as it was 
before the decision was ordered or undertaken, and 
when resumed must be continued from that point, or 
stage of progress. 

MODE OF ORGANIZING. 

27. What is the proper mode of organizing a meeting f 
The usual mode of organizing a meeting is for some 

one,* at the time appointed, to request the attention 
of the assembly present, and after suggesting the pro- 
priety of appointing a president, solicit nominations 
for that office. The nominations being made, he moves 
that the person first nominated be requested to preside 
over the deliberations of the meeting. If that be sec- 
onded, he says : " Those in favor of this motion will 
please signify it by saying ' Aye P " The response to 
this being given, he adds : " Those opposed to the motion 
will please say ' No P " 

If the question be decided in the affirmative, f the 

* If the meeting has been convened by a public call, or advertise 
nient, it seems most proper that one of the persons signing the call 
should commence business by either nominating a person to preside, 
or soliciting nominations from the assembly. A call for a public 
meeting should always state clearly the object had in view, and be 
signed by the parties most prominent in originating it. 

f If, however, the question be negatived, another nomination is, 



MODE OF ORGANIZING. 51 

person so elected immediately takes the chair, and pro- 
ceeds to complete the organization, by requesting the 
members to nominate a suitable person for the office of 
Secretary, as also persons for such other offices as may 
be deemed necessary or expedient. 

28. Would it be in order to organize temporarily, for 
the purpose of effecting a permanent organization f 

It would not only be in order, but it is also some- 
times very desirable to effect a temporary organiza- 
tion, for the express purpose of obtaining a judicious 
selection of officers. This is especially the case where 
the meeting is composed of persons from different and 
distant parts of the country, and who may not, conse- 
quently, be personally known to one another. 

The mode of appointing a chairman and other offi- 
cers pro tern., is the same as that described (in answer to 
question 27) for the appointment of permanent officers. 

29 In what way does the meeting, thus temporarily 
organized, proceed to select suitable officers f 

It is customary, and, perhaps, always best, to refer 
the matter to a committee. The committee, in such 
case, should retire immediately, examine the claims of 
the several persons apparently suitable for the places 
to be filled, and, with all convenient dispatch, report a 
list of candidates to the meeting* 

30. Suppose it should be the will of a meeting, called for 

of course, requested, and acted upon as before; and this process is 
repeated, if necessary, till a president is chosen. 

* For the mode of presenting and receiving the Report of a Com- 
mittee, see page 000. 



52 EULES OF OKDER. 

a temporary purpose, to form itself into a regular society, 
what form should be observed in so doing f 

A meeting, or convention convoked for a temporary 
object, may be converted into a permanent organiza- 
tion, by passing a resolution to that effect, and provid- 
ing, also, by resolution, for the appointment of a com- 
mittee to draft and report a constitution for the pro- 
posed society. The constitution, when duly accepted 
and adopted, should be signed by all the persons adopt- 
ing it, and should fix the conditions, on which other 
persons might afterwards be admitted to membership. 

DUTIES OF OFFICERS AND MEMBERS. 

31. What are the duties of the President f 
The ordinary duties of the President are the following: 
(1.) To preside impartially over the deliberations of 
the assembly, — to enforce the rules of order in the 
transaction of business, — to be kind and courteous 
himself, and to maintain due decorum among the 
members, — to give information, when necessary, on 
points of order, and, in cases of dispute, to decide 
upon questions of Parliamentary practice : 

(2.) To receive and duly announce all messages and 
communications for the assembly, — to insist upon a 
strict observance of the order of business, — to submit, 
in an orderly way, all proper motions, propositions or 
petitions made by members, — to see that each member 
has his just rights and privileges in debate, — to put to 
vote all questions that have been properly brought for- 
ward for discussion and decision, and officially make 
known the result. 



DUTIES OF OFFICEES AKD MEMBEES. 53 

(3.) To appoint by name, when so directed or re- 
quired, the members that are to serve on committees, — • 
to take measures, as far as may be, that such commit- 
tees discharge efficiently the duties incumbent upon 
them ; and at all meetings, whether stated or special, 
to call for their Eeports, if due, and see that these are, 
in proper form, presented to the meeting : 

(4.) To see, that the several other officers properly 
discharge the duties assigned to them, — that the requi- 
sitions of the Constitution and By-Laws be fully com- 
plied with, — that the instructions of the society on 
every occasion be rightly carried out, — that its acts 
and proceedings, when necessary, be duly authenti- 
cated by his signature; and, in short, that the true 
aims of the organization never be frustrated, either by 
his own, or the negligence of others. 

32. What is the duty of a Vice-President f 

The duty of the Yice-President is, in the absence of 
the President, to assume and transact all such business 
as properly falls within the province of the presidential 
office. 

33. What are the duties of the Recording Secretary f 
The duties of the Eecording Secretary are, in general, 

these : 

To call the roll at the opening of a meeting, and 
note the names of the members absent, — to record 
faithfully the doings of the society, — to read aloud such 
papers as may be ordered to be read, — to call the 
roll when the vote is taken by yeas and nays, and re- 
cord the answer of each member, — to notify commit- 



54 RULES OF ORDER. 

tees of their appointment and of the matters committed 
to them, — to authenticate, when necessary, by his sig- 
nature, the acts and proceedings of the body, and to 
take in charge all papers and documents belonging 
thereto. 

34. What is the duty of a Corresponding Secretary f 
The duty of the Corresponding Secretary is to con- 
duct, under the instructions of the society, all corre- 
spondence with other societies or individuals. 

35. What is the duty of the Treasurer? 

The duty of the Treasurer is to receive, and under 
specified regulations, to disburse all moneys belonging 
to the society,' — to keep an accurate account of all pecu- 
niary matters pertaining thereto, — and when required, 
to give a clear and correct statement of its financial 
condition. 

36. What are the rights of the members ? 

Every member has an equal right with every other 
member, to offer in the proper way, any motion, or res- 
olution which he may deem expedient, — to enter, in 
the way of explanation and discussion, upon the mer- 
its of his proposition, and to have it duly weighed and 
decided upon by the assembly. He has, also, in com- 
mon with the rest, various other rights and privileges, 
which will come up more properly under other heads. 

37. What are the duties of the members f 

The duty of every member is to follow strictly the 
rules of order, — to abstain from all personalities in de- 



MODE OF COMMENCING BUSINESS. 55 

bate,- — never designedly or heedlessly to interrupt an- 
other member while speaking, — never to create dis- 
turbance in the assembly, or any part thereof, by whis- 
pering, hissing, or any other act of indecency, — and, 
finally, in all respects to observe the decorum and 
propriety of deportment proper to a gentleman. 

MODE OF COMMENCING BUSINESS. 

38. What is the first step after the organization of a 
meeting f 

The first step after organizing is for the President 
officially to announce, that the meeting being duly or- 
ganized, is now ready for the transaction of business. 

It is quite customary, moreover, for the President, 
upon taking his place as the presiding officer of a meet- 
ing, to make a short address suitable to the occasion. 
If the meeting be the result of a published call, he 
should read the call aloud, or himself state, in few 
words, the objects proposed by those who have made it. 

39. When the assembly is thus duly organized, and 
ready for business, how is it to be introduced? 

Business may be introduced in a deliberative assem- 
bly either by the presentation of petitions, memorials, 
or other papers, emanating from persons not belonging 
to the body, or by offering resolutions, or by calling 
for the Eeports of Committees. 

If the meeting has been called for some specific ob- 
ject, the proper course is for some one to rise and 
move that a Committee be appointed to draft Eesolu- 
tions expressive of the sense of the assembly. 



56 KULES OF ORDER. 

While the Committee are out, engaged in this duty, 
it is usual to call on some suitable person to address 
the meeting. As soon as he has closed his remarks, 
the Committee, if ready, immediately present their Ke- 
port in the manner described on page 112. 

In case Resolutions have been prepared beforehand, 
as sometimes happens, they are, of course, presented 
to the meeting in due form, without the intervention 
of a committee. 

40. How is business commenced at a meeting of a So- 
ciety, or other permanent organization f 

The presiding officer, on taking his place, first re- 
quests the members to come to order. Then, either 
by counting himself, or directing the Secretary to call 
the roll, he proceeds to ascertain whether there is a 
quorum present. 

If there be a quorum, he then requests the Secretary 
to read the minutes of the last meeting ;* if not, busi- 
ness is, of course, suspended till the next regular 
meeting. 

41. What is meant by a quorum ? 

A quorum is such a number of members as may, by 
rule, or statute, be required to be present at a meeting 
in order to render the transactions Of the body legal, 
or valid. Thus, by the Constitution of the United 
States, it is provided, that a majority of each House 
of Congress shall be necessary to form a quorum to 
transact business, f 

* For the mode of approving of the minutes, &c, &c, see page 
110. 
f The term quorum (literally, of whom) is one of the words used, 



COMMITTEES. 57 

COMMITTEES, 

42. What is a committee f 

It is often convenient, if not necessary, for a delib- 
erative body to commit, or entrust, to one or more of 
its members such matters as require a more extended 
examination, or a more free discussion, or a more elab- 
orate preparation for action, than is compatible with 
the formalities essential to the government of large as- 
semblies. The party or parties to whom such matters 
are committed, is called a committee. 

43. Is a matter referred to a committee for no other pur- 
pose than for those just specified? 

A matter may be referred to a committee merely as 
a suitable means of collecting information concerning 
it. Not unfrequently the reference to a committee is 
only a convenient mode of postponing the considera- 
tion of a subject. 

44. May a part only of a subject be referred to a com- 
mittee F 

A subject may be referred to a committee, in part 

in England, in the Latin form of the commission to justices of the 
peace. The part of the document wherein the word occurs, runs thus : 
" We have also assigned you, and every two or more of you, quorum 
unum, A B vel C T> vel E F, &c, esse volumus, that is, of whom we 
will that A B or C D or E F, &c, shall be one." This made it 
necessary that certain individuals, who, in the language of the 
commission, were said to be of the " quorum," should be present dur- 
ing the transaction of business. 

Hence, in legislative and other deliberative bodies, has arisen the 
application of the term to such a number of the members as may be 
declared necessary to gi^ <s validity to any business proceeding. 

3* 



58 RULES OF ORDER. 

or in whole, at the pleasure of the assembly ; or dif- 
ferent parts of the same subject may be referred to 
different committees. 

45. What is the difference between a Select and a 
Standing Committee f 

In most deliberative assemblies, it is found advan- 
tageous to have several permanent committees, to each 
of which a particular subject, or class of subjects is in 
general referred. Such committees are called Standing 
Committees. 

Now and then, however, there arises a subject not 
properly referable to any one of the standing commit- 
tees, or, for some cause, or other, more proper to be 
entrusted to a committee chosen expressly for the oc- 
casion. Such a committee is called a Select Committee. 

46. Are committees bound by particular instructions, or 
left to act according to their own discretion ? 

The office of a committee is essentially that of an 
agent, or factor ; and as an agent is bound always to 
obey the instructions of his principal, or if under no 
special instructions, he is to do what best he can to 
promote the interest committed to his charge, so a 
committee is bound at all times to follow out strictly 
the directions given by the assembly, or if left to their 
own discretion, their duty is to exercise their best 
judgment in carrying out the will of the body for 
whom they act.* 

* The assembly may, at any time during the progress of their de- 
liberations, revoke instructions previously given, impose new ones 
producing an entirely different aspect or direction of affairs, or 
leave them altogether to their own discretion. 



COMMITTEES. 59 

47. How is the number of which a committee shall con- 
sist, decided upon f 

If, in the motion to appoint a committee, whether 
select or standing, the nnmber of persons of which it 
shall consist, is not specified, it is customary for mem- 
bers, without resort to a motion, to propose different 
numbers, as each may prefer. The President, then 
following the rule observed in the case of filling 
blanks,* puts to vote the question on each number, be- 
ginning with the highest, till he comes to that on which 
the assembly can agree. 

48. After the number is fixed, of which a committee 
shall be composed, what is the mode of selecting the mem- 
bers of it? 

The members of a committee may be appointed by 
the presiding officer^ either in virtue of some standing 
rule, or in accordance with a motion made for the oc- 
casion ; or they may be elected by ballot, provided a 
resolution is passed to that effect ; or, lastly, they may 
be chosen by an open nomination and vote of the 
assembly. 

49. In the choice of members to serve on a committee, is 
regard to be had to their previously Jcnown, or expressed 
opinions on the matters to be referred to them ? 

The general rule is, that he who is known to be ut- 
terly opposed to a proposition, should not be appointed 
on a committee, charged merely with the amendment 
or modification of that proposition; since his aim 
would not be to amend, but to destroy. 

* See page 98. 



60 RULES OF ORDER. 

If, therefore, the design of the commitment is amend- 
ment, which is here taken for granted, those only 
ought to be members of the committee, who, though 
friendly to the measure, or proposition, in the main, 
still desire to amend, or alter it in certain particulars. 

This rule, however, is rather discretionary than im- 
perative; since the appointing power, whether the 
President or the assembly, is under no positive obliga- 
tion to observe it.* 

50. Is a committee free to organize in its own way, or 
must it be organized under special instructions from the 
assembly f 

Every committee has the right to organize in its own 
way ; that is, is perfectly free to appoint its own offi- 
cers.f But, as in the assembly, it is usually consid- 
ered polite and proper to place on the committee 
both the mover and the seconder of the motion to 
raise such committee, so in the committee itself, it is, 
as a matter of courtesy, so customary as to amount al- 
most to a rule, to appoint the member first named, or 
selected, to act as its chairman, and to report its pro- 
ceedings to the body at large.:): 

* It is the duty of the Secretary, when a committee has been 
appointed, to make out a list of the members, and send it, together 
with a copy of the instructions under which they are to act, to the 
person first named, on the list. 

f See, however, the answer to question 68, and the note. 

\ The person first named on a committee always acts as chair- 
man pro. tern, till the permanent Chairman is appointed. It is his 
duty, accordingly, to call a meeting of his colleagues at the earliest 
convenience, and so open the way to business. 



COMMITTEES. 61 

51. Is a committee at liberty to fix its own time and 
place of meeting f 

In respect to the time and place of meeting, as in 
respect to the disposition of the matters entrusted to 
it, a committee is always subject to the direction of 
the assembly ; and if, when ordered to meet at a par- 
ticular time, it fails of that time, it is not at liberty to 
enter upon duty, till again directed to sit by the as- 
sembly. 

But, if left without special direction in this regard, 
the committee has power, as a matter of course, to 
choose such time and place as may be deemed expedi- 
ent; provided always, the time be not that during 
which the assembly itself is in session. 

52. May the members of a committee transact the busi- 
ness referred to them, by separate consultation, and without 
the formality of a regular meeting ? 

Nothing is the act of a committee, which is not done 
or agreed to, in the committee duly assembled, as such. 
There can, therefore, be no such thing as the report 
of a committee, made by separate consultation, and 
without the formality of a regular meeting of its mem- 
bers. 

53. Are committees never allowed to sit in deliberation, 
while the assembly itself is in session ? 

If the business is such as to require immediate at- 
tention, or the assembly is anxious for despatch, a 
committee may be ordered to sit, while the body itself 
is in session. But, unless so ordered, it is contrary to 



62 . . EULES OF ORDER. 

a rule founded on obvious propriety, for a committee 
to sit while the assembly is sitting.* 

If, therefore, the body itself, after an adjournment, 
is found to be in session, while the committee is yet 
engaged in its deliberations, it is the duty of the com- 
mittee forthwith to rise and attend the assembly. 

54. Is it necessary in order to the transaction of busi- 
ness in committee, that all the members of the committee 
should be present ? 

The number of members necessary to form a quo- 
rum for the transaction of business in a committee, is 
sometimes fixed by a vote, or by a standing . rule of 
the assembly. Where, however, this is not the case, 
a majority is, in this country, commonly considered 
requisite to constitute a quorum, or else whatever 
other proportion may be necessary to a quorum in the 
assembly itself. 

55. What subjects are usually referred to committees, 
and what is the ordinary mode of proceeding in them ? 

To committees, as before observed, f are usually re- 

* The rule that committees are not to sit during the session of 
the assembly, is founded upon the principle, that the presence of the 
members constituting the committee, as well as that of all others, 
is necessary to full and efficient service in the body. The absence 
of a single member is often a great disadvantage. 

The meetings of the assembly itself are, on this account, not un- 
frequently so appointed as to time, as to allow full opportunity for 
the discharge of duty in committees. Thus, it is well known that 
in Congress the daily sessions do not commence till twelve o'clock, 
mainly out of regard to the immense amount of labor devolving 
upon committees in preparing and digesting business for action in 
the two Houses. 

f See answer to question 42. 



COMMITTEES. 63 

ferred such papers, propositions, or other matters, as 
require to be digested, amended, or examined with a 
minuteness of detail very inconvenient, if not quite 
impracticable, in the full assembly. Accordingly, 
they are often obliged to make many personal inquir- 
ies, to examine lengthy documents bearing upon the 
subject confided to them, to examine witnesses, and 
otherwise to pursue protracted investigations. 

In regard to the mode of proceeding in committee, 
the order, in most respects, is the same with that ob- 
served in the assembly itself. Thus, nothing is con- 
sidered as an act of the committee, which has not been 
done in a meeting regularly convened ; wherein busi- 
ness must be transacted by motions duly made, sec- 
onded and passed, as in the assembly. 

56. Is it necessary for a committee to append to their 
report a resolution respecting the subject of their delibera- 
tions, and to recommend its adoption by the assembly f 

The very object of a committee is to prepare busi- 
ness for the action of the assembly. It is, therefore, 
settled by an almost universal usage, that every report 
of a committee should conclude with a resolution.* 

57. What course is adopted in the case of breaches of 
order, or disorderly words in a committee f 

A breach of order in committee is not punishable 
by the committee itself; neither are disorderly words. 

* If the committee has been raised merely to gather information, 
or if they should think proper to render a verbal report, declaring 
the matter of no sufficient interest or importance to require action, 
the report should close with a resolution to discharge the committee 
from the further consideration of the subject. 



64 EULES OF OKDEE. 

Both, must be reported to the assembly ; the disorderly 
words being written down as when occurring in the 
assembly itself.* 

58. When a subject is referred to a committee, is it left 
with them to treat it as they please ? 

A committee may be instructed, or directed in rela- 
tion to the subject committed to their charge, or not, at 
the pleasure of the assembly. But, if left without in- 
structions as to the duties assigned them, they have 
the right to treat the matter entirely according to their 
own judgment, and to report to the assembly upon it 
in whatever manner they deem expedient. 

59. What is the course pursued in relation to papers 
before a committee t 

The course pursued in relation to papers is, in gen- 
eral, the same as that adopted in the assembly. The 
paper is first read through by the Secretary or the 
Chairman ; then it is again read by the Chairman, by 
paragraphs or sections ; he pausing, at proper inter- 
vals, to hear and put to the vote the amendments, if 
any, that may be offered by members. This being 
done, if the paper is one that has originated with the 
committee, the question is then taken upon the whole 
document, as amended or unamended. 

If, however, the paper is not original with the com- 
mittee, but is one that has been merely submitted for 
amendment, the question upon the adoption, or rejec- 
tion of the whole is not, of course, to be taken ; for 
that, as well as the amendment proposed by the com- 
mittee, belongs ultimately to the assembly itself. 

* See page 124. 



COMMITTEES. 65 

60. Suppose the committee should he opposed to the pa- 
per altogether ; what is to be done f 

In the event of a committee being entirely opposed 
to a paper submitted for amendment, their course is to 
report it back to the assembly unamended, with the 
reasons therefor, if thought desirable, and then, not as 
members of the committee, but as members of the 
body at large, make what opposition to it they see fit. 

61. Is a committee at liberty to alter, by way of amend- 
ment, or otherwise, the subject-matter under consideration ? 

No committee is allowed to alter the subject under 
deliberation, their duty being confined strictly to a 
consideration of its nature and bearings. 

When the subject is referred with instructions, the 
instructions must, of course, be strictly obeyed. 

62. Is a committee at liberty to erase, interline, or other- 
wise mark over a paper under their consideration f 

A committee is, of course, at liberty to erase, inter- 
line, or otherwise mark any paper originating with 
themselves. 

But, in the case of a paper submitted by the assem- 
bly, they have no right to mark, or deface it in any way, 
or for any purpose whatever. If they agree to propose 
amendments or alterations, these must be put on a sep- 
arate piece of paper, and the places where it is pro- 
posed to insert them, designated by the proper line, 
page, paragraph, or section of the original document. 

The committee may, however, if they please, report 
their amendment in the form of a new draft of the 



66 RULES OF ORDER. 

original paper, with, the amendments duly made and 
inserted. This, in fact, where the alterations are mi- 
nute or numerous, is decidedly the best way. 

63. /Supposing a difference of opinion to exist among 
the members of a committee, have the minority a right to 
bring in a counter report f 

The reception of a report from the minority of a 
committee is conceded rather as a favor than as a right. 
This is done, though not strictly in order, partly out 
of courtesy, and partly for the sake of a more full de- 
velopment of the matter in dispute.* 

* On the subject of Minority Reports, Mr. Cushing very justly 
says : — "The report of a committee being the conclusion which is 
agreed to by a majority of the members, the dissenting, or not-agree- 
ing members, according to strict parliamentary practice, "would 
have no other mode of bringing their views before the assembly 
than as individual members. Inasmuch, however, as such members 
may be supposed to have given the subject equal consideration with 
the other members of the committee, and may, therefore, be in pos- 
session of views and opinions equally worthy of the attention of 
the assembly, the practice has become general in the legislative as- 
semblies of this country, to allow members in the minority to pre- 
sent their views and conclusions in the parliamentary form of a re- 
port, which is accordingly known by the somewhat incongruous ap- 
pellation of a minority report. Any two, or more of the members 
may unite in such a report, or each one of them may express his 
views in a separate document. 

"A minority report is not recognized as a report of the committee, 
or acted upon as such ; it is received by courtesy, and allowed to 
accompany the report, as representing the opinions of the minority ; 
and, in order to its being adopted by the assembly, it must be mov- 
ed as an amendment to the report, when that comes to be consid- 
ered." 

For more on this subject, see page 116. 



COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE. 67 

COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE. 

64. What is a committee of the whole f 

A committee may consist, according to the pleasure 
of the assembly, of one member only, of a number of 
members, or of the entire body. A committee em- 
bracing the entire body, is called a committee of the 
whole. 

65. What is the use of a committee of the whole f 
There are times when it is best for the whole assem- 
bly, unfettered by certain parliamentary restraints, to 
deal with a subject after the manner adopted in ordi- 
nary committees. In such cases, it is usual for the 
body to resolve itself into a committee of the whole. 

66. What is the form employed in resolving an assem- 
bly into a committee of the whole f 

The form employed in resolving an assembly into a 
committee of the whole, is this : A member rises in his 
place, and moves, " that the assembly do now resolve itself 
into a committee of the whole, to take under consideration 
the subject" (whatever it is) ; and this being seconded, the 
question is put to vote by the presiding officer. 

If decided in the affirmative, the President, after an- 
nouncing the result, resigns the chair to whomsoever 
is named, or appointed to act as chairman of the com- 
mittee, and then takes part, like other members, in the 
matters under deliberation. 

67. Sow is the Chairman of the committee of the whole 
appointed? 

Immediately after the passage of a resolution to go 



68 RULES OF ORDER. 

into a committee of the whole, it is usual for the Pres- 
ident of the assembly to name, or designate a member 
to act as chairman of the committee. 

This he does either in virtue of some special rule or 
in accordance with established custom : if in virtue of 
a rule, the person so named, or designated is thereby 
appointed : if merely in compliance with custom, the 
appointment may, or may not be acquiesced in accord- 
ing to the will of the members. 

If, therefore, on going into a committee of the whole, 
the presiding officer, in conformity with usage, but 
without the authority of a special rule, assigns to a 
member the chairmanship of the committee, if no one 
objects all is right, and the appointment is valid ; but if 
objection be made, a chairman must be appointed by a 
regular vote. 

68. Is the election, in such case, to be made by a vote of 
the members acting in the capacity of a committee, or in 
that of the assembly proper f 

If, as supposed in the preceding answer, the appoint- 
ment of a chairman by vote becomes necessary, it must 
be by a vote of the assembly as such : the presiding 
officer resuming the chair in order to put the question* 

* Jefferson, in his Manual (Section xii.), says, that, where the ap- 
pointment is to be made by vote, committees of the whole " have 
a right to elect one ; some member, by consent, putting the ques- 
tion." On this, Mr. Cushing (p. 175) says: — "The statement that, 
where a Chairman is to be appointed by vote, the question is to be 
put by some member in the committee, though laid down by Mr. 
Jefferson, on the authority of an old writer on parliamentary pro- 
ceedings, is not sanctioned by Hatsell, or borne out by the modern 
practice in the British parliament." 



COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE. 69 

69. What number of members constitutes a quorum in 
a committee of the whole f 

Whatever number constitutes a quorum in the as- 
sembly itself, constitutes a quorum in a committee of 
the whole. 

70. What course is taken when no quorum is present f 

"When the number present in a committee of the 
whole becomes less than that required to form a quorum, 
the committee, upon motion to that effect, must rise ; 
in which case, the presiding officer of the assembly, 
whose duty is always to be present in the committee, 
and ready, when necessary, to resume the chair, takes 
his proper place, and the committee of the whole is ac- 
cordingly dissolved. 

71. How is a Secretary appointed in committee of the 
whole f 

In committee of the whole, the Clerk or Secretary of 
of the assembly, or his assistant, if he has one, acts as 
secretary. 

72. Does he record the proceedings of the committee on 
the journal, or minute-booh of the assembly? 

The report of the committee, that is, whatever they 
conclude to lay before the assembly, as the result 
of their deliberation, the Clerk, or Secretary at the 
proper time enters, of course, upon his record ; but the 
proceedings in committee are not recorded in his jour- 
nal. 



70 RULES OF ORDER. 

73. Are the proceedings in a committee of the whole dif- 
ferent from those in the assembly itself f 

The mode of proceeding and the rules of order in a 
committee of the whole are not essentially different 
from those observed in the body itself. But, as the 
only object of a committee is to secure a release from 
certain embarrasments, necessarily existent in the con- 
duct of the assembly proper, it follows, as a m atter of 
course, that some differences must be made in the or- 
der of proceeding. 

74. What are the principal points in which the order 
of proceeding in a committee of the whole, differs from that 
pursued in the assembly itself? 

In the assembly, a member cannot speak more than 
once or twice on the same subject ; in committee of 
the whole, he may speak as often as he pleases. In 
the assembly, all discussions may be suddenly arrested 
by the use of the previous question ; in committee of 
the whole, the previous question can never be intro- 
duced. In the assembly, the yeas and nays may be 
called for, and an appeal be made from the decisions 
of the chair ; in committee of the whole, neither a 
call for the yeas and nays nor an appeal from the 
chair is allowable. In the assembly, committees of 
their own number may be raised at any time ; in com- 
mittee of the whole, a committee of their own number, 
that is, a sub-committee, is inadmissible. In the assem- 
bly, any breach of order may be punished ; in commit- 
tee of the whole, as in other committees, the matter 
must be referred to the assembly. In the assembly, a 
motion may be made and carried to adjourn to another 



COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE. 71 

time and place ; in committee of the whole, if, for any 
reason, it is thought proper to discontinue their delib- 
erations for a time, it is necessary for some one to 
move that the committee rise, report progress, and ask 
leave to sit again. 

Besides all this, greater freedom every way is allow- 
ed in committee of the whole than would be admis- 
sible in the assembly ; and, moreover, the proceedings 
in the committee, which, though leading to results 
however useful, are themselves often tedious and in- 
formal, are not required to be placed upon the record, 
as would be the case were they the transactions of the 
assembly as such. 

75. What form is observed, when the committee rise and 
report f 

If the motion to rise is carried, the Chairman of the 
committee immediately yields the chair to the Presi- 
dent of the assembly. Then, taking his proper place 
among the members, he rises and informs the presi- 
dent that the committee of the whole have, in obedi- 
ence to the order of the assembly, had the subject of 
(whatever it may be) under consideration ; that some 
progress had been made in the disposition of it ; and 
that, for want of time (or whatever other cause), hav- 
ing been obliged to discontinue their deliberations, 
they had instructed him to ask leave for the committee 
to sit again. 

76. If leave be granted for the committee to sit again, is 
it necessary for the assembly, at the time appointed, 



72 KULES OF ORDER. 

again formally to resolve itself into a committee of the 
whole f 

If the motion to grant the request of the committee 
for another sitting be decided in the affirmative, the 
assembly must then also, by motion, name the time 
for that sitting, and, when that time arrives, it is nec- 
essary to go again regularly through the formality 
of resolving the assembly into a committee of the 
whole. 

77. What course is taken in committee of the whole, 
when the business referred to them, is finished f 

When the business referred to the committee of the 
whole, is finished, some one moves that the committee 
do now rise and report. This motion being passed, 
the President of the assembly resumes the chair, and 
the Chairman of the committee rising in his place 
among the members, states that the committee of the 
whole, having finished the business entrusted to them, 
have directed him to present a report, which is ready, 
whenever it is the pleasure of the assembly to re- 
ceive it. 

The proper way then, is to fix by motion the time 
for receiving the report. But often, in the matter of 
receiving a report, a formal motion is omitted : the as- 
sembly, if that be their pleasure, crying out, " Now ! 
Now I" or if another time, " Monday ! Tuesday I" or 
whatever other day they choose. 



SECTION V. 

PRIVILEGED QUESTIONS. 

78. What are privileged questions f 

The general rule, in deliberative bodies, is, that the 
question first moved and seconded, shall first be put to 
the vote. Circumstances, however, sometimes require 
a departure from this rule. 

There are, accordingly, certain motions, or questions 
which are allowed to supersede a proposition already 
under debate, and which, for that reason, are denomi- 
nated privileged questions. The question superseded, 
in such case, is called the main, or principal question. 

79. What are the particular circumstances that call for 
the use of privileged questions f 

The circumstances requiring resort to the use of 
privileged questions, are various. Thus, the assembly, 
exhausted by long-continued attention to duty, may 
desire to adjourn ; hence the motion to adjourn is a 
privileged one. They may be willing longer to enter- 
tain a proposition, but not at the present time ; thence 
arises the necessity of a motion to lie on the table. 
They may deem it expedient to suppress further de- 
bate on a subject ; for which purpose recourse is had 

4 



74 RULES OF ORDER. 

to what is called the previous question. They may 
want time for reflection, or to gather information ; 
this creates the occasion for a motion to postpone to a 
certain day. They may wish to have the proposition 
modified or altered, or the subject investigated, to an 
extent or in a manner incompatible with the formali- 
ties proper to the proceedings of the full assembly ; 
thence comes the need of a motion to commit, that is, 
to refer the matter to a committee. They may be fa- 
vorable to a proposition in the main, but dissatisfied 
with certain particulars, capable of easy alteration in 
the assembly ; that gives rise to a motion to amend. 
They may be anxious to get rid of a proposition alto- 
gether, and yet not to do so in a rude or indelicate 
manner ; that is accomplished by the use of a motion 
to postpone indefinitely. They may have previously 
ordered, or appointed certain business for certain times, 
and the hour having arrived for such business, there 
may be need of a motion to proceed to the orders of the 
day. They may have already decided a question, and, 
upon further reflection, concluded to retrace their steps, 
and bring the matter again under deliberation ; in 
which event, there is need of a motion to reconsider. 

But there are other motions still, which circum- 
stances require to take precedence over a question al- 
ready before the assembly. These are such as arise 
incidentally, and, being incidental to motions of every 
kind, they are allowed, for the time being, to supersede 
the proposition under discussion, whether it be a priv- 
ileged one or not. The incidental questions are such 
as respect the privilege of the members of the assem- 
bly, or of the whole assembly taken collectively ; such 



PKIVILEGED QUESTIONS. 75 

as have regard to questions of order, to the reading of 
papers relating to the matter under debate, to the with- 
drawal of motions, to the suspension of rules, and the 
amendment of amendments. 

The following is a list of all the above-mentioned 
questions, or motions, being here included under the 
general head of 

PEIVILEGED QUESTIONS* 

1. Motions to adjourn. 

2. Motions to lie on the table. 

3. Motions for the previous question. 

4. Motions to postpone to a day certain. 

5. Motions to commit. 

6. Motions to amend. 

7. Motions to postpone indefinitely. 

8. Motions for the orders of the day. 

9. Motions concerning questions of privilege. 

10. Motions concerning questions of order. 

11. Motions for the reading of papers. 

12. Motions for the withdrawal of motions. 

13. Motions for the suspension of rules. 

14. Motions to reconsider. 

* The questions included in the list above, excepting the last, 
are divided by Mr. Cushing into three classes, and arranged thus : 

Privileged Questions : — Adjournment, Questions of Privilege and 
Orders of the Day. 

Incidental Questions: — Questions of Order, Reading of Papers, 
Withdrawal of a Motion, Suspension of a Rule and Amendment of 
Amendments. 

Subsidiary Questions : — Lie on the Table, Previous Question, Post- 
ponement, Commitment and Amendment. 



76 RULES OF ORDER. 

80. Have these privileged questions any privilege among 
themselves f 

The questions which thus have a right to take pre- 
cedence of the main, or principal question, have, also, 
a certain order of precedence among themselves. In 
some deliberative bodies, that order is settled by a for- 
mal rule. Thus, in the 11th Eule of the United States 
Senate, we read : 

" When a question is under debate, no motion shall 
be received but to adjourn, to lie on the table, to postpone 
indefinitely, to postpone to a day certain, to commit, or to 
amend ; which several motions shall have precedence 
in the order they stand arranged, and the motion for 
adjournment shall always be in order, and be decided 
without debate." 

The order prescribed in the 46th Eule of the House 
of Kepresentatives, is the following : 

" When a question is under debate, no motion shall 
be received, but to adjourn, to lie on the table, for the pre- 
vious question, to postpone to a day certain, to commit or 
amend, to postpone indefinitely ; which several motions 
shall have precedence in the order in which they are 
arranged ; and no motion to postpone to a day certain, 
to commit, or to postpone indefinitely, being decided, 
shall be again allowed on the same day, and at the 
same stage of the bill or proposition. A motion to 
strike out the enacting words of a bill shall have pre- 
cedence of a motion to amend, and, if carried, shall be 
considered equivalent to its rejection." 



THE MOTION TO ADJOURN. 77 

THE MOTION TO ADJOURN, 

81. When is a motion to adjourn in order f 

A motion to adjourn, as stated in the Senate Kule, 
is always in order, and, therefore, takes precedence of 
all others.* It must, moreover, be put without debate. 

82. Why should a motion to adjourn have precedence of 
all others ? 

Because otherwise the body might be kept in session 
against its will, and that for an indefinite period of time. 

83. Must the motion to adjourn, then, be always enter- 
tained without respect to time or circumstances f 

In a general sense, a motion to adjourn maybe, and 
usually is, said to be always in order. But this must 
be taken with some limitations. Thus, it cannot be re- 
ceived while a member is speaking, unless he consents 
to give way for that purpose ; it cannot be entertained 
while a vote, or the process of calling the yeas and nays, 
is in progress ; it cannot, after being once negatived, be 
renewed previous to the intervention of some other busi- 
ness; and, lastly, it must be a motion to adjourn sim- 
ply, without specification of any kind ; that is, merely 
that the assembly " do now adjourn ."f 

* By the 48th Rule of the United States House of Representa- 
tives, not only a motion to adjourn, but also a motion to fix the day 
to which the House will adjourn, is declared to be always in order. 

Under this Rule, also, a motion to fix the day, to which the House 
shall adjourn, is made to take precedence of a simple motion to adjourn. 

f See, however, the 48th Rule of the United States House of Rep- 
resentatives, referred to in the preceding note. 



78 RULES OF ORDER. 

84. Is a motion to adjourn susceptible of amendment f 
Amotion to adjourn cannot be amended; for the. 

amendment itself would introduce new business not 
entitled to take precedence of the main question. 

If, however, a motion to adjourn is offered, when no 
other proposition is before the assembly, it may be 
amended like any other motion. 

85. If the motion to adjourn must be made without 
specification of time, how is the assembly to be governed, 
as to the time of the next meeting f 

When a motion simply to adjourn is decided in the 
affirmative, the body is thereby adjourned to the next 
regular time of sitting ; or to such time, if any, as has 
been appointed by previous resolution. 

86. What difference, if any, is there between a motion 
simply to adjourn, and a motion to adjourn sine die ? 

Sine die means without day ; that is, without a day 
appointed for another meeting. In reality, therefore, 
a motion simply to adjourn, and a motion to adjourn 
sine die, are things identical. But the form to adjourn 
sine die is mainly employed in relation to bodies, where- 
of no re-assembling is contemplated ; in which case, of 
course, to adjourn sine die is the same as to dissolve the 
assembly altogether. 

87. What formality, if any, on the part of the presid- 
ing officer, is necessary to give efficacy to a motion to ad- 
journ f 

Though a resolution to adjourn has been duly passed, 



THE MOTION TO LIE ON THE TABLE. 79 

there is, nevertheless, properly no adjournment, until 
the President has officially announced the same from 
the chair. 

88. What becomes of a proposition which has been ar- 
rested, while under debate, by a vote for adjournment ? 

When a proposition has been interrupted in its 
course by a motion to adjourn, it is thereby removed 
from the body, and, if again brought up, must be in- 
troduced in the usual way. 



THE MOTION TO LIE ON THE TABLE. 

89. When is a motion to lie on the table employed t 

It sometimes happens while one matter is under de- 
liberation, another claims the immediate attention of 
the assembly ; or for some other reason, it is deemed ex- 
pedient, for the time being, to discontinue the discussion 
of a pending proposition, with a view to take up the 
subject at a more convenient season. In such case a 
motion is made to lay the subject on the table, that is, 
to lay it aside, till it is the pleasure of the body to re- 
sume the consideration of it. 

90. What rank does it hold among privileged questions f 
A motion to lie on the table usually takes precedence 

of all motions, except the motion to adjourn, a question 
of privilege, and a motion for the orders of the day.* 

* In Congress the motion to lie on the table supersedes all mo- 
tions, except a motion to adjourn. See Rules of the Senate and 
House, page 76. 



80 RULES OF ORDER. 

91. Is the motion to lie on the table debatable f 

The motion to lie on the table can neither be deba- 
ted nor amended. It is, therefore, often employed to 
get rid of a question altogether. 

92. What is the effect of this motion, if decided affirm- 
atively f 

The effect of a motion to lie on the table, if decided 
in the affirmative, is to withdraw from the assembly 
the main question, together with all other secondary, 
or incidental questions relating thereto, until, by mo- 
tion duly made and passed, it be the pleasure of the 
body to resume the consideration thereof. 

93. What if it be decided negatively f 

A motion to lie on the table, when decided by a 
negative vote, leaves the pending question wholly un- 
touched, and its discussion is, therefore, immediately 
resumed, and continued just as though no interrup- 
tion had taken place. 

THE P1EYI0US QUESTION. 

94. What is the previous question f 

"Whenever it is thought desirable suddenly to arrest 
discussion, and test immediately the sense of an assem- 
bly, in respect to a subject under debate, there is a mo- 
tion, or question expressly for this purpose, which is 
denominated " the previous question." 

95. What was the origin and design of this motion f 
This motion was introduced, in 1604, by Sir Harry 



THE PEEVIOUS QUESTION. 81 

Vane, in the British House of Commons, and was de- 
signed to suppress, motions which, if publicly discussed, 
might bring censure upon the government, or upon in- 
dividuals occupying high official station. 



96. What was its form and el 

The original form of the previous question was,— 
"Shall the main question be put?" This was simply 
asking whether, after the debate was over, however 
long or earnest it might be, the main question should 
ultimately be put to the vote. If decided in the af- 
firmative, of course, the discussion might be resumed, 
and continued, till the subject was regularly and final- 
ly disposed of. 

In the event of a negative decision, however, which 
was precisely the object sought by the mover, all dis- 
cussion of the main question was at an end, and more 
than that, the whole subject was taken from before the 
House for the remainder of the session. This was a 
natural result ; for what would be the use of continu- 
ing to discuss a question which the House had already 
determined, should not (after all) be put to the vote ? 

When afterwards the form of the previous question 
was changed to that which it now has, which is. 
" Shall the main question be now put f " an affirmative 
decision entirely precluded all further debate on the 
main, or principal question, and brought the subject 
immediately to the test of a vote ; while a negative de- 
cision, though operating still in the suppression of de- 
bate, did not necessarily remove the main question 
from before the House for the whole session, but for 
the rest of the day only ; so that it might be renewed, 

4* 



82 RULES OF ORDER. 

if thought desirable, on the next, or on some succeed- 
ing day. This is the present operation of the previous 
question in the British Parliament. 

In this country, an affirmative decision of the pre- 
vious question has the same effect precisely, as it has in 
England, that is, it brings the main question, without 
further delay or debate, directly to a vote. And in such 
case, the pending amendments, if any, are first, in their 
order, put to vote, and then, of course, forthwith the 
main question.* But a negative decision of it operates 
differently ; for that assumes, that, if the main question 
is not now to be put, (which is what a negative de- 
cision declares,) then that question is still subject to 
debate, just as it would have been, had the previous 
question never been demanded or applied. 

97. Is this the effect of a negative decision in all delib- 
erative bodies? 

In the House of Eepresentatives of the United States 
its effect is to suppress the main question for the rest 
of the day only, just as in the British Parliament. In 
the House of Eepresentatives of Massachusetts, and in 
the House of Assembly of New York, the effect of a 
negative decision of the previous question is to leave 
the main question with all pending amendments just 
where it was ; that is, under debate, till disposed of in 

* Formerly in the House of Representatives, the previous ques- 
tion, if decided in the affirmative, brought the House immediately 
to a vote on the main question, to the exclusion of all amendments 
and incidental motions. This was changed (Jan. 14, 1840,) and the 
present order, namely, that indicated in the text above, was estab- 
lished. 



THE PKEVIOUS QUESTION". 83 

the usual way. And, in all deliberative assemblies in 
this country, it is usually taken for granted, unless 
otherwise ordered by a special rule, that a negative de- 
cision of the previous question leaves the main ques- 
tion and all amendments thereto, under deliberation 
just as it found them. 

98. Why is this motion sometimes called the "gag- 
law" f 

Since the effect of an affirmative decision of the pre- 
vious question is to preclude all further debate, and 
bring the main question directly to a vote, it is in this 
country employed almost exclusively for the purpose 
of arresting unprofitable discussion, and so hastening 
a decision. 

It is easy, however, to make an abusive application 
of the previous question, by rendering it subservient 
to the purpose of cutting off the most wholesome and 
necessary discussions, and so compelling members to 
be silent, who ought for the sake of truth and justice 
to be heard. Hence Mr. Jefferson has said : " There- 
fore, it ought not to be favored, but restricted within as 
narrow limits as possible." This unjust use of the 
previous question is what has often secured to it the 
appellation of the "gag-law." 

99. Can a motion so important as this, and' so liable 
to be abused, be entertained upon its being offered by one 
member only, and seconded by another, as is the case with 
most other questions f 

In the British Parliament any member may move 
the previous question, and, if seconded by another, it 



84 RULES OF ORDER. 

is thereby put into requisition. This is done also, in 
many assemblies in this country. 

In the House of Kepresentatives, however,- it can 
only be admitted, when demanded by a majority of 
the members present.* When first recognized by the 
House, (April 7th, 1789) it could be introduced by a 
call from five members. It was afterwards (Dec. 23d, 
1811) resolved, as in the case of a call for the yeas and 
nays, that one fifth of the members present, should be 
necessary to a call for the previous question. This 
continued to be the Eule till February 24th, 1840. 
At that time a change was made, by which, as stated 
above, the previous question can be admitted, only 
when demanded by a majority of the members pres- 
ent.f 

100. How does the previous question rank among priv- 
ileged questions f 

The previous question has the same rank as the mo- 
tion to postpone, the motion to commit, and the motion 
to amend. It cannot, therefore, if first put, be super- 
seded by any one of these. 

It yields the precedence, however, to a motion to 
adjourn, to lie on the table, to a motion respecting the 
rights and privileges of the members, or of the assem- 
bly at large, or to a motion for the orders of the day. 

* That the use of the previous question ought to be under some 
limitation greater than that which is customary in the case of other 
motions, seems very obvious. In all deliberative bodies, therefore, 
the number, at whose call it may be admitted, ought to be fixed by 
a special rule. 

f See Rules of Order for the House of Representatives, JSTo. 50. 



THE MOTION TO POSTPONE. 85 

101. Is a motion for the previous question debatable? 

No debate is allowable on a motion for the previous 
question. Neither is it susceptible of amendment. 
All questions of order, moreover, arising incidentally 
thereon, must be decided without discussion, whether 
appeal be had from the chair or not. 



THE MOTION TO POSTPONE. 

102. What is the object of a motion to postpone t 

The object of a motion to postpone is, either to defer 
the consideration of a pending proposition till a more 
convenient season, or to get rid of it altogether without 
coming directly to a vote upon it. The motion to post- 
pone, therefore, is, according to the aim of the mover, 
either for a specified time, or for a period indefinite. 

103. What rank among privileged questions does a mo- 
tion to postpone hold f 

The motion to postpone holds the same rank with 
the previous question, the motion to commit, and the 
motion to amend, and cannot by any of these be super- 
seded. If, however, the motion to postpone be put, 
and lost, the pending proposition is nevertheless sub- 
ject to the application of the co-ordinate motions; 
that is, the previous question, the motion to commit, 
and the motion to amend. 

104. What becomes of a proposition which has been in- 
terrupted by the passage of a motion to postpone ? 

A proposition thus interrupted by the motion to 



86 KULES OF ORDER. 

postpone is thereby removed from before the assembly, 
together with all matters pertaining to it. 

105. Can a motion to postpone he amended f 

If a motion is offered to postpone to a day certain, 
that is, to a specified time, it may be amended by sub- 
stituting a different time. The time, in such case, how- 
ever, may be regarded as a blank, to be filled in the 
manner described on page 98 following. 

106. What is the aim of a motion for indefinite post- 
ponement f 

The aim of a motion to postpone indefinitely, is to 
get rid of a proposition altogether without coming di- 
rectly to a vote upon it ; for, when decided affirmative- 
ly, the effect is to quash the proposition entirely. 

107. Can a motion to postpone indefinitely he debated, 
or amended ? 

A motion for the indefinite postponement of a sub- 
ject is generally held to be incapable, either of debate, 
or amendment.* 

108. What is the effect upon the pending proposition, if 
a motion to postpone is decided in the negative ? 

A negative decision of a motion to postpone has no 

* Cushing (Manual, page 96) however, says, — "If a motion is made 
for an indefinite postponement, it may be moved to amend the mo- 
tion, by making it to a day certain. If any other day is desired, it 
may be moved as an amendment to the amendment ; or it may be 
moved as an independent motion, when the amendment has been 
rejected." 



THE MOTION TO COMMIT. 87 

effect whatever upon the pending proposition ; which 
is then to be treated in all respects as if no such mo- 
tion had been made. 



THE MOTION TO COMMIT. 

•109. When is a motion to commit employed ? 

When the matter of a proposition is such, in general, 
as the assembly can approve, while the form, in which . 
it comes, is so objectionable, that it would be incon- 
venient to give it the required shape in the assembly 
itself, it is usual to refer the subject to a committee. 

If there be a standing committee within whose prov- 
ince the subject would properly fall, the matter goes 
properly to that committee ; if not, a select committee 
is raised for that purpose. 

110. In the event of there being such a standing com- 
mittee, must the matter be referred to that committee f 

The assembly may, if for any reason it be thought 
best, raise a select committee for any given subject, 
though there be, already existing, a standing com- 
mittee, to whom the subject should otherwise be * 
ferred. 

But, if it be doubtful whether a particular standjBp 
committee is the one that ought to have charge o:^8J^ 
matter, and some members are found proposing a ref-' 
erence to the standing, while others prefer to give the 
subject to a select committee, the motion to refer to the 
standing committee should be first submitted to a vote 
of the assembly. 



88 RULES OF ORDER. 

111. Is a motion to commit subject to amendment f 

A motion to commit may be amended variously. It 
may be amended by substituting one committee, or 
kind of committee for another ; by increasing, or less- 
ening the number of members proposed ; or by adding 
directions, or instructions in regard to the subject com- 
mitted. 

112. What is the rank of a motion to commit among 
privileged questions ? 

The motion to commit is in the same rank as the 
previous question and the motion to postpone, and can- 
not, therefore, be superseded by either of them. 

It, however, has the precedence over a motion to 
amend. 

113. What is the effect of an affirmative decision of a 
motion to commit f 

An affirmative decision of a motion to commit takes 
the subject of course from before the assembly ; if de- 
cided negatively, however, the subject remains before 
the assembly, and may then, if desirable, be subjected 
*o the operation of the previous question, the motion 
. o postpone, or to amend. 

MOTIONS TO AMEND. 

114. What is a motion to amend f 

When a proposition is in substance agreeable to the 
wishes of an assembly, but in form, or in some of its 
details objectionable, it is customary, by motions to 



MOTIONS TO AMEND. 89 

that effect, to correct, curtail, enlarge, or otherwise 
modify it according to the will of the body. Motions 
for this purpose are called motions to amend. 

115. Is it iviihin the province of a deliberative body thus 
to alter the character of a proposition submitted for their 
decision f 

The primary and legitimate use of a motion to 
amend, as the term implies, is so to correct, or improve 
the form, or statement of a proposition, as to aid it in 
reaching the object which it aims to accomplish. A 
motion to amend, therefore, is properly an act friendly 
to the proposition to be amended. 

But a proposition once moved, seconded, and stated 
from the chair, is then the property of the assembly, 
and there is nothing to hinder the introduction of mo- 
tions to alter it in any way whatever. 

It is, therefore, perfectly competent for the assembly 
whenever they think proper, either so to amend a 
proposition, as to make it more truly answerable to its 
object, or altogether to turn it away from its original 
purpose, and render it subservient to objects entirely 
different and adverse. Accordingly, a proposition is 
not unfrequently so altered by what are called motions 
to amend, that its original friends and movers are com- 
pelled finally to vote against it in its amended shape. 
Thus, motions to amend are sometimes made to work 
the defeat of a proposition, and are, in fact, often em- 
ployed for this express purpose. 

So entire is the change often effected under color of 
amendment, that, where no special rule exists to the 
contrary, matters utterly incompatible with the propo- 



90 RULES OF ORDER. 

sition under consideration, are engrossed upon it, and, 
in some cases, everything of the original motion, after 
the initiatory words, " Resolved that" is struck out, and 
a proposition entirely different added. 

116. May an assembly then fix, by special rule, the 
limits within which an amendment shall be allowed to 
operate ? 

In order to prevent the improper use of motions to 
amend, some deliberative bodies have established rules 
on the subject. Thus, the rule in the United States 
House of Eepresentatives is, that " no motion, or prop- 
osition on a subject different from that under consid- 
eration shall be admitted under color of an amend- 
ment. ISTo bill, or resolution shall at any time be 
amended by annexing thereto, or incorporating there- 
with, any other bill or resolution pending before the 
House* 

This, or some similar restriction, seems highly need- 
ful, and ought everywhere to be adopted as a rule. 

117. In what way are amendments usually made f 
Amendments, whether applied to original motions, 

or to other amendments, are usually effected in one of 
these three ways : (1) by the insertion or addition of 
words or sentences ; (2) by the removal or striking out 
of words and sentences ; or (3) by the striking out of 
some words or sentences, and the insertion of others 
in their stead. 

* See Jefferson's Manual, page 145 ; also, Cushing's Manual, page 
324. 



MOTIONS TO AMEND. 91 

118. What is the proper order of proceeding in making 
amendments in these several ways ? 

When a proposition consists of several parts, para- 
graphs, or sections, or is expressed in a series of resolu- 
tions, the proper order of proceeding is to begin with 
the first, and amend, if necessary, each of the parts, 
paragraphs, sections, or resolutions in order. 

119. Is it in order to make amendments to amendments, 
and, if so, to what extent can this process he carried? 

It is quite in order to amend an amendment ; but 
here the process must terminate, an amendment of an 
amendment to an amendment being wholly inadmiss- 
ible. 

120. Why is such an amendment not allowed? 
"Were amendments heaped upon amendments in this 

way, the result would be not a facilitating of the busi* 
ness of the assembly, but a very serious embarrass- 
ment. Hence, by a well settled usage, the process of 
amending is forbidden to go beyond an amendment to 
an amendment. 

121. But suppose the object sought in amotion to amend 
an amendment to an amendment, be a desirable one, how, 
since such a motion is inadmissible, can that object be 
reached by the assembly f 

Whenever an amendment to an amendment seems 
itself to require amendment, since this is not allowed 
to be done by a regular motion to that effect, the ob- 
ject desired can, nevertheless, be easily obtained, by 



92 EULES OF ORDEE. 

first rejecting the amendment to the amendment, and 
then, after amending it in the manner required, offer- 
ing it again in its altered form as an amendment to the 
first amendment, which is, of course, entirely in order * 

122. Is it in order to alter, or amend what has already 
been agreed to by the assembly f 

If the assembly has already, by vote, agreed, either 
to receive, or to reject a proposed amendment, that 
which has thus been agreed to, cannot be altered, or 
amended. Thus, if it has been voted to receive as an 
amendment a given clause, or paragraph, it is not in 
order thereafter to amend this amendment ; and, if it 
has been agreed in the like manner, not to strike out 
certain words, those words cannot afterwards be amend- 
ed : the vote not to strike out being in effect a vote to 
retain them, as they stand. 

Neither can that which has once been disapproved 
by a vote of the body, be again moved in that form 
as an amendment. 

123. Is there, then, no way of removing, or inserting, 
as the case may be, words or paragraphs which it has 
once been decided by vote to retain, or reject f 

If an amendment which proposes to strike out apar- 

* "Thus," says Cushing, in illustration of this, "if a proposition 
consist of A B, and it is proposed to amend by inserting C D, it may 
be moved to amend the amendment by inserting EF; but it cannot 
be moved to amend this amendment, as for example, by inserting G-. 
The only mode by which this can be reached, is to reject the amend- 
ment in the form in which it is presented, namely, to insert EF, and 
to move it in the form in which it is desired to be amended, namely, 
to insert EGF." 



MOTIONS TO AMEND. 93 

ticular clause, or paragraph, is once rejected, a motion 
simply to strike out the same words, or part of them, 
is not in order ; but a motion to strike out the same 
words, or a part of them, in connection with other words 
is in order; " provided always, the coherence to be 
struck out be so substantial, as to make this effectually 
a different proposition."* 

If, on the other hand, an amendment which proposes 
to strike out, be agreed to, it is not allowable to move 
to insert the same words, or part of them ; but it is 
quite in order to move to insert the same, or part of the 
same words in connection with others ; provided, as 
before, the coherence to be inserted form, in effect, a 
different proposition. 

124. When it is proposed to amend by striking out cer- 
tain words, and inserting others in their stead, would it 
be in order to move for the striking out and the insertion 
separately f 

The motion to strike out one thing, and insert another 
in its place, is in reality a. double motion. It may, 
therefore, at the pleasure of the assembly, or even at 
the call of a single member, be divided. In that case 
the question is first taken on the striking out, and (that 
being decided in the affirmative) it is then taken on 
the insertion. In the event of a negative decision of 
the motion to strike out, the motion to insert does not 
of course follow. 

125. When the motion to amend by striking out one 
thing, and inserting another in its place, is once put and 

* Jefferson's Manual, see. 85. 



94 EULES OF OKDEK. 

lost in the undivided, or double form, can the same motion 
be renewed f 

No motion to amend, whether to strike out, to insert, 
or to strike out and insert, when once lost, can again 
be moved in the same form * 

126. Is it in order to propose an amendment which is 
inconsistent with an amendment already adopted f 

An amendment which is in conflict with one al- 
ready accepted, is certainly out of order, and ought at 
once to be rejected. 

127. Is it not the duty of the presiding officer in such 
case to reject, or suppress, such an amendment, if proposed f 

Though an amendment that is incompatible with 
one already approved by the assembly, offers, by that 
very circumstance, a fit ground for its rejection by the 
assembly, it is not competent for the presiding officer 
to suppress it, as being contrary to order ; for, were he 
allowed to bring questions of consistency like this 
within the circle of the rules of order, he might often 
usurp a negative on important modifications, and defeat 
instead of subserving the will of the assembly. 

128. What is the proper mode of stating a motion to 
amend f 

The proper mode of stating a proposition to amend, 
is first to read the whole passage to be amended, — then 
the words proposed to be struck out, or the words pro- 

* See answers to questions 122 and 123. 



MOTIONS TO AMEND. 95 

posed to be inserted, or the words proposed to be 
struck out and those offered as a substitute, as the case 
may be, — and, last of all, the whole passage as it will 
stand when amended. 

129. In what particular order, if any, must amend- 
ments be put to the vote f 

An amendment must, of course, come to the vote be- 
fore the main question, and, in like manner, an amend- 
ment to an amendment must take the precedence. 
But, in the event of there being several proposed 
amendments to an amendment, they should be put to 
the vote in the order in which they are moved ; not 
however, because of any established order of prec- 
edence, but in view of the fitness, or propriety of the 
thing. 

130. What is the proper form of the question on a mo- 
tion to strike out f 

The form in Parliament always is, — shall the words 
proposed to be struck out stand as part of the princi- 
pal question : the question being not, Shall they be struck 
out, but Shall they stand f 

But in this country, the form of the question always 
is, — Shall the words be stricken out P* 

131. What rank among privileged questions is held by 
a motion to amend ? 

A motion to amend holds the same rank with the 
previous question, and indefinite postponement ; con- 
sequently, that which is first moved must be first put. 

* See Jefferson's Manual, see. 85, and Gushing, p. 67. 



96 EULES OF ORDER. 

132. By what motions is the motion to amend liable to 
be superseded? 

The motion to amend is liable to be superseded by 
a motion to postpone to a day certain, that is, to a par- 
ticular time ; so that amendment and postponement 
being in competition, the motion to postpone takes 
precedence. 

A motion to amend may also be superseded by a 
motion to commit ; so that the latter motion being 
offered while an amendment is under discussion, it 
must be put to the vote first. 

DIVISION OF A QUESTION. 

133. What other changes, if any, in the nature of 
amendments, can be wrought, by motion, upon propositions 
before a deliberative assembly f 

There are several other changes which may be com- 
prehended under the general name of amendments, to 
which a proposition under discussion may be subjected. 
Thus, it may be expedient to divide a question, or to 
effect an addition, or union of several propositions, or 
to transpose the different parts of a proposition, or to 
fill up blanks designedly left for the action of the as- 
sembly. 

134. What do you mean by dividing a question f 
When a motion embraces several parts, each of which 

forms substantially a separate proposition, the resolu- 
tion of it into distinct motions, or questions is called 
dividing the question. 



DIVISION OF A QUESTION. 97 

135. What advantage is there in such a division of the 
question, and how is it effected f 

A motion may, in the form of a single proposition, 
comprehend in reality two or more propositions, one or 
more of which alone might be acceptable to the assem- 
bly, while the rest might be decidedly objectionable. 

The advantage, therefore, of a division of the ques- 
tion is, that it affords the assembly an opportunity to 
receive, or to reject what part it thinks proper, and. that, 
without embarrassment. The division of a question is 
effected by an order of the assembly, obtained upon 
motion introduced in the usual way ; and when divided, 
the several divisions, or proposition, into which it has 
been resolved, must be voted upon and decided in the 
order in which they stand. 

136. What should be the character of a motion to divide 
a question? 

A motion to divide a question should state particularly 
the manner, in which it proposed to make the division. 

137. is a motion for a division of the question, itself ca- 
pable of alteration, or amendment? 

A motion to divide is subject to precisely the same 
rules of amendment as any other. 

138. Is it competent for any member that thinks proper 
to require a division of tlie question f 

It is not unfrequently claimed that any member has 
a right to demand the division of a question, and that 
without a vote of the assembly. But for this claim 
there is no good foundation, unless, as is sometimes the 
case, there is a standing rule in the body to that effect. 
" The fact is," (Jef. Man., Sect. xxxvL) " that the only 

5 



98 RULES OP ORDER. 

mode of separating a complicated question is by mov- 
ing amendments to it ;" or by an order of the assem- 
bly obtained, as before said, upon motion introduced, 
and carried in the usual way. 

139. Under what circumstances is an addition, or union 
of the parts of a question, expedient ? 

Whenever, as often occurs, a motion embraces in 
form two propositions, while in substance there really 
exists but one, it is usually thought expedient to add 
or unite the separate propositions, so as to present the 
whole matter to the assembly as a single question. 

140. What is the mode of proceeding in order to effect 
such addition,or union f 

The addition, or union maybe effected, either by voting 
down one of the propositions, and then incorporating 
its substance with the other, or by referring the whole 
matter to a committee, with instructions to put the two 
propositions in the form of a single question, or motion. 

141. What is the process in the case of transposition f 
Whenever it is deemed expedient to transpose a 

clause, paragraph, or section, there should be a motion 
to remove it from the place where it is, and another to 
insert it in the place preferred. 

THE FILLING OF BLANKS. 

142. What is the order, or process observed in filling 
blanks? 

When blanks for the insertion of particular times 
or numbers are designedly left in a proposition to be 
filled by a vote of the asssembly, the motions to fill 
such blanks are dealt with, not as amendments, but as 



ORDERS OF THE DAY. 99 

original motions, and must be decided upon before put- 
ting the main question. 

In the event of there being several different propo- 
sitions respecting the times or numbers proper to fill 
the blanks, the general rule is, to put the question first 
on the longest time and the largest sum. In the British 
House of Commons, however the rule is that the ques- 
tion shall be put first on the smallest sum, and the long- 
est time.* 

ORDERS OF THE DAY. 

143. What is meant by the orders of the day f 
It is often expedient to order, by resolution, a partic- 
ular subject to be brought up for consideration on a par- 
ticular day. Subjects thus ordered, or appointed for a 
specified time, are called the orders of the day for that 
particular day. 

* The rule laid down in Jefferson's Manual, and that which gen- 
erally prevails where there is no special rule to the contrary, is thus 
expressed (in Section xxxiii): "In all cases of time or number, we 
must consider whether the larger comprehends the lesser, as in a 
question to what day a postponement shall be, the number of a com- 
mittee, amount of a fine, term of an imprisonment, term of irre- 
deemability of a loan, or the terminus in quern {limit to which) in any 
other case. Then the question must begin d maximo {from the great- 
est). Or whether the lesser includes the greater, as in questions on 
the limitation of the rate of interest, on what day the session shall 
be closed by adjournment, on what day the next shall commence, 
when an act shall commence, or the terminus d quo (the limit from 
which) in any other case, where the question must begin d minimo 
(from the least). The object being not to begin at that extreme 
which and more being within every man's wish, no one could nega- 
tive it, and yet if we should vote in the affirmative, every question 
for more would be precluded ; but at that extreme which would 
unite few, and then advance or recede till you get to a number 
which will unite a bare majority." 



100 RULES OF ORDER. 

144. When a question is thus assigned for a given day, 
is it necessary to specify the particular hour of the day f . 

If no particular hour of the day is specified, the or- 
der, or subject appointed, may claim, and is entitled 
to the entire day. If, however, a particular time of 
the day is named, the order of the day cannot be made 
a privileged question; that is, cannot supersede any 
pending question, till the appointed hour arrrives. 

145. What is the rank of a motion for the orders of 
the day f 

A motion for the orders of the day commonly takes 
precedence of all other business, except a motion to 
adjourn, or a question of privilege. 

146. Supposing several orders, or subjects to have been 
assigned for the same day, can the motion for the orders of 
the day be used to call up one of them in particular to the 
exclusion of the rest f 

It cannot ; the motions must be for the orders of the 
day collectively. 

147. How, then, in case of dispute, can it be decided 
which shall be acted upon first? 

The rule established by custom is, that they shall 
be taken up in the order, in which they stand on the 
record. 

148. Suppose, of several orders appointed for the same 
day, one only is assigned for a particular hour, can the 
rest, in the event of their being time sufficient, be acted upon 
before that hour f 

If; among several orders of the day, one is named for 



OEDEKS OF THE DAY. 101 

a particular hour, the rest may be acted on in due suc- 
cession, as they stand upon the record, till that hour 
arrives ; when the subject appropriate to it must come 
up next in order. 

149. Suppose that none of the orders are taken up before 
the hour fixed upon for that particular one, what course is 
then pursued f 

The order for that particular hour is first considered, 
and the rest follow as they stand on the record. 

150. Suppose the motion for the orders of the day be de- 
cided in the negative, what then is the course to be taken f 

In the event of a motion for the orders of the day 
being decided in the negative, the pending question is 
thereby entitled to be first considered, and decided 
upon. 

151. Can a motion for the orders of the day be made, 
while a member is speaking f 

A motion for the orders of the day cannot be made, 
while a member is speaking, because it is a breach of 
order to interrupt him, while speaking, unless by a call 
to order. 

152. What becomes of a question, or proposition which 
has been superseded by a motion for the orders of the 
day? 

A question superseded by a motion for the orders of 
the day, is removed entirely from before the assembly, 
and, if renewed, must be brought up de novo in the or- 
dinary way. 



102 EULES OF OEDEE. 

153. In the event of an omission to act upon the orders 
of the day on the day appointed, what becomes of them f 

Orders of the day, if not acted upon on the day ap- 
pointed for them, are thereby made of no effect ; that 
is, they cannot, unless renewed for some other day, be 
regarded in the light of privileged questions. 

But, in case of a special rule or by-law to that ef- 
fect, orders for a given day, when not disposed of on 
the day appointed, may have precedence on every day 
thereafter, till finally decided upon. 

154. Can orders of the day, when once made and ap- 
pointed, be discharged? 

Orders of the day may be discharged at any time, 
and a new order made for a different day. 



QUESTIONS OF PRIVILEGE. 

155. What are questions of privilege f 

Questions of privilege are those that involve the 
rights and privileges of individual members, or of the 
whole body taken collectively : as where a dispute 
arises respecting the presence of persons not belonging 
to the body, or where a quarrel takes place between 
members themselves. 

156. What rank does a question of privilege hold among 
privileged questions f 

A question of privilege prevails for the time, over 
all other propositions, except a motion to adjourn. 



QUESTIONS OF ORDER. 103 

157. What becomes of a proposition that hois been super- 
seded by a question of privilege ? ■ 

A proposition superseded by a question of privilege, 
is regarded as still pending, and must be taken up 
again just where it was left off. 



QUESTIONS OF ORDER. 

158. What are questions of order ? 

It is the right and the duty of every member of a 
deliberative assembly to see, as far as may be, that the 
rules of order, in every proceeding, be duly observed. 
He may, therefore, and should in all cases of a breach 
of the rules, rise to the point of order, and insist upon 
its being duly enforced. 

But, if in a case of this kind, a difference of opinion 
exists, as to whether a rule has been violated or not, 
the question, which is thence called a question of or- 
der, must be determined before the application of the 
rule can be insisted upon. 

159. But how is it to be determined '? 

A question of order is usually settled by the decision 
of the chair and without debate. If, however, the de- 
cision of the president be deemed unsatisfactory, it is 
competent for any member to appeal from that decision, 
and demand a vote of the house on the matter. 

On an appeal, the question is stated by the presiding 
officer, and usually in this form : " Shall the decision of 
the chair be sustained V or, " Shall the decision of the chair 
stand as the decision of the assembly V 



104 KULES OF ORDER. 

160. Is a motion on an appeal, like this, debatable f 

A motion on an appeal from the decision of the chair 
is to be debated, and in all respects treated like any 
other question ; and, what is altogether against order 
in other cases, the presiding officer is permitted to par- 
ticipate in the debate. 

161. What effect, if any, beyond the mere delay, is pro- 
duced upon a pending proposition by the introduction of a 
question of order f 

It sometimes happens, that the decision of a question 
of order disposes of the question out of which it arose ; 
but, with this exception, a pending proposition remains 
wholly unaffected by the introduction and decision of 
a question of order, and the consideration of it is to 
be resumed just at the point, where it was interrupted. 



M0TI0ES FOE THE READING OF PAPERS. 

162. When, if not always, is it necessary to introduce 
a motion for the reading of papers ? 

When papers, or documents of any kind are laid be- 
fore a deliberative assembly, every member has a right 
to have them read once before he can be required to 
vote upon them. 

Accordingly, when the reading of a paper which has 
immediate reference to the matter under discussion is 
called for, the paper is of course read by the clerk, or 
secretary, without the formality of a vote to that 
effect. 



MOTIONS FOR THE READING OF PAPERS. 105 

163. Has, then, any member, the right at any time, to 
call for the reading of any paper that he may deem perti- 
nent to the matter under debate f 

JSTo member lias a right to read or have read any 
book, paper, or other document, which is not obviously 
essential to a right understanding of the question 
before the house. This is manifestly a very proper 
limitation ; for without it, such delay and embarrass- 
ment would often ensue as to prevent the transaction 
of the most important business. 

When, therefore, a member desires to read or have 
read a paper that seems to transcend the limits within 
which such reading ought to be confined, even though 
it should be his own previously prepared speech on 
the subject, he must, for this purpose, if any one 
objects, obtain permission so to do by a vote of the 
assembly. 

164. Is the reading of a paper ordinarily objected to in 
an assembly t 

That depends upon its apparent aim, or obvious 
tendency. If the aim clearly is to shed light upon the 
subject, and so conduce to a more intelligent disposi- 
tion of it, the paper is ordinarily read, under the direc- 
tion of the presiding officer, without the least objec- 
tion. But, when the purpose of the proposed reading 
is obviously to create delay, or where, for any reason, 
it seems likely to operate as an abuse of the time and 
patience of the assembly, it is generally met with a 
most decided negative. 

- 5* 



106 RULES OF ORDER. 



MOTIONS FOR THE WITHDRAWAL OF MOTION. 

165. When is it necessary to offer a motion for the 
withdrawal of a motion f 

When a motion is once moved, seconded, and stated 
from the chair, it is thereafter the property of the 
house, and cannot be withdrawn bj the mover.* 

If, however, the mover, either for the purpose of 
modifying it, or substituting another in its place, or for 
any other purpose, desires to withdraw it from the 
House, he is not at liberty so to do, without leave ob- 
tained by a motion to that effect, regularly made and 
passed in the usual way. If the motion for a with- 
drawal is negatived, the matter must be treated just as 
if no motion to withdraw had been proposed. 

MOTIONS FOR THE SUSPENSION OF RULES. 

166. When is a motion for the suspension of a rule 
necessary f 

When anything is proposed which is forbidden by a 
special rule, but which is deemed to be of such import- 
ance as to warrant a suspension of that rule, it is nec- 
essary to make a motion to that effect. Of course, the 
motion to suspend precedes the original motion. 

* This is the rule in Parliament, and the general rule in the Leg- 
islative bodies of this country. There are, however, exceptions to it ; 
as in the state Legislature of Pennsylvania ; where a motion, or 
resolution may he withdrawn by the mover at any time previous to 
an amendment, or a final decision. 



MOTION TO RECONSIDER. 107 

167. Can a motion to suspend the operation of a special 
rule, be carried by the will of a bare majority? 

If there be no standing-rule, or by-law to the con- 
trary, a motion to suspend, like any other motion, is 
carried by a vote of the majority. But, in most delib- 
erative assemblies, there is an established rule on the 
subject, whereby a motion to suspend, in order to be 
successful, must have a fixed number of votes ; as two- 
thirds, or three-fourths, for example. 



MOTION TO RECONSIDER. 

168. What is a motion to reconsider f 

In the British Parliament, when once a question has 
been decided, whether negatively, or affirmatively, that 
decision stands as the sense, will, or judgment of the 
House, and is held to be irreversible. 

But, as the members of an assembly are individ- 
ually liable to mistakes, so, in their collective capacity, 
they sometimes find themselves in error. The result 
is, that in Parliament, where a vote once given is ac- 
counted unchangeable, great inconvenience ensues, 
when it is found, as must occasionally happen, that 
such vote grew out of error, or misconception.* 

The embarrassments resulting from a rigid adher- 
ence to this rule have been avoided, in this country, by 
the introduction of what is called the motion to re- 
consider ; whereby a decision found to be erroneous, 
may be reviewed and revised. 

* Various are the shifts and expedients adopted in Parliament 
to escape the consequences of the rule under notice ; such as acts 
explaining, enforcing, correcting, &c, &c. 



108 RULES OF ORDER. 

169. Under what restrictions, if any, must the motion 
to reconsider be made f 

The time within which, and the parties by whom, a 
motion to reconsider shall be made, are, in many cases, 
fixed by a special rule. Thus, in Congress, a motion 
to reconsider must be made, either on the same day, or 
on the day after the passage of the resolution to 
which it relates. Where there is no special rule on 
the subject, the motion to reconsider is under no limit- 
ation as to time. 

In respect to the parties by whom a motion to re- 
consider shall be made, it is a general rule, that the 
proposition must emanate from some member who 
voted with the majority. 

170. In what condition does a motion to reconsider, if 
decided in the affirmative, place the subject, to which it re- 
fers £ 

Should a motion to reconsider prevail, the position 
of the subject, to which it refers, is exactly what it was 
before the decision which made the reconsideration 
necessary. It may, therefore, be resumed at that 
point, and disposed of according to the pleasure of the 
assembly. 

171. is the motion to reconsider a privileged one f 

A motion to reconsider in Congress, takes pre- 
cedence of all other motions, except the motion to ad- 
journ ; and, wherever the time within which a motion 
to reconsider is fixed by special rule, it ought thus to 
have the precedence. 



SECTION VI. 

OK-DEK OF BUSINESS. 

172. When a variety of subjects offer, themselves for the 
consideration of a deliberative body, what particular order, 
if any, is observed in taking them up f 

In almost all permanently organized bodies, there is 
a particular order of business established by a special 
rule, or by-law. But, where no such rule exists, the 
President, unless the matter is, for the time, otherwise 
ordered by a vote of the assembly, introduces business 
according to his pleasure, or sense of propriety in the 
case. 

173. What advantage, if any, results from a standing t 
rule fixing the order of business f 

A standing rule, or order of business affords several 
important advantages. It saves time ; it secures to each 
topic its proper place ; and, therefore, prevents disputes 
about precedency, and so facilitates the transaction of 
business. 

174. Must the standing -rule, or order of business, where 
there is one, always be adhered to f 

A rule fixing the order of business, like any other 
rule, may, upon proper occasion, of course, be suspended. 



110 EULES OF OEDER. 

175. In cases where the minutes of a previous meeting 
are read, is it necessary to approve them by a formal motion t 

It is quite customary, after the reading of the min- 
utes, for a formal motion of approval to be made and 
submitted ; but such formal action does not appear to 
be necessary. 

For, as they must, if correct, be approved, no mo- 
tion is needed, unless some error is detected in them. 
Ordinarily, therefore, where no mistake is discovered, 
it is quite sufficient for the President to say in sub- 
stance: — " What is the pleasure of the meeting in regard 
to the minutes which have just been read? If there be no 
objection, they will be considered as approved" In the 
event of there being no objection, he simply adds : " The 
minutes, then, stand approved." 

176. Suppose an error is detected, what then is done f 

In case of the existence of an error in the minutes, 
a motion is made to correct, and the correction being 
made, the President, in submitting the question, says : 
" Shall the minutes, as corrected, be approved?" If de- 
cided affirmatively, he simply announces the result, 
and thus the matter ends.* 

177. What is the next step after the approval of the 
minutes ? 

Immediately after the approval of the minutes, the 
President announces the first business, in order, accord- 

* It should be kept in mind, that no motion to amend the minutes, 
by striking out words or sentences, is at all admissible, unless they 
contain some error of fact. 



ORDER OF BUSINESS. Ill 

ing to the special rule, if there be one, or if not, what- 
ever he deems appropriate first to introduce. 

178. Suppose the first business in order to he the presen- 
tation of petitions, memorials, or other communications, in 
what way are they to be introduced f 

Any member charged with the presentation of a pe- 
tition, or other communication, should, when the proper 
time arrives, rise in his place, with the paper in his 
hand, and announce that he has been commissioned to 
present such a paper. He then briefly describes the 
character of the document, and unless anticipated in 
so doing by another member, moves that it be received. 

179. Is the member who presents such petition, or other 
communication, responsible, in any wise, for the character 
of its contents f 

The member that presents a petition or any other 
communication, should be prepared beforehand to give, 
if required, a summary of its contents, and to vouch 
for the decency and respectfulness of its language and 
sentiments. 

180. Is it in order for parties who are not members of 
the body, to appear therein, and introduce communications ? 

A petition or other communication should always be 
presented by a member, specially entrusted with that 
service by the parties from whom it emanates, or by 
others immediately interested in its contents. But 
letters and other ordinary communications are usually 
handed to the President, and hy him or by the secre- 
tary read without further formality. 



112 EULES OF ORDEE. 

181. If received, what further action is taken upon it? 
If the document be received, it is then handed to 

the secretary to be read. This being done, the Pres- 
ident asks what order shall be taken upon it : where- 
upon, a motion for that purpose being made, it is either 
acted upon immediately by the assembly, or set down 
for a particular time, or referred to a committee, or 
else postponed indefinitely. 

182. Supposing the next thing in order to be reports 
from committees, in what way are they to be introduced ? 

The time being come for reports from committees, 
the President, commencing with the first on his list, 
asks aloud : " Is the committee on (naming the subject) 
ready to report V 

The chairman of that committee, if present, or in 
the event of his being absent, some other member of it, 
then rises, and, if prepared to report, says : " The com- 
mittee, Mr. President, to whom was referred the subject 
(naming it) have had the matter under consideration, and 
have instructed me to deliver a report, which is ready to be 
presented whenever the assembly is pleased to receive it? m 

183. Is a motion to receive such report necessary? 

]STo motion to receive the report is necessary, or is 
generally made, unless some objection to receiving it 
is raised, or it is deemed expedient to fix some other 

* If not prepared to report, he may simply announce, that the 
committee is not prepared to report at this time, or he may report 
progress, or make any statement, or explanation respecting the mat- 
ter which may appear proper or expedient. 



OKDEE OF BUSINESS. 113 

time for receiving it. In either case, a motion must be 
made, and submitted, in the usual way, either by the 
chairman of the committee himself, or by some other 
member of the body. 

184. If it he decided to receive the report, what is the 
next step in the process f 

The report is then, by direction of the President, 
read,* either by the chairman of the committee in his 
place, or by the secretary. It is then, together with all 
other papers connected with it, put in charge of the 
secretary. 

This being done, the President asks : " What order 
shall he taken on the report which has just heen read? 

185. In what way is it proper to respond to this ques- 
tion, or what action does it call forth f 

As an assembly can dispose of a report of a com- 
mittee just as they can of any other matter proposed 
for their consideration, the question, " What order shall 
he taken on the report?" elicits, of course, from mem- 
bers motions, either to accept, or adopt, to amend,f to 
recommit, or to make any other regular disposition of 
it whatever. 

* Where reports are ordered to be printed before being acted 
upon, as in legislative assemblies, the reading is rendered unnec- 
essary. 

f It is, however, a disputed point, whether the report of a commit- 
tee can be amended by the assembly. The best usage seems to be 
against it. Still, according to high authority, a report may be 
amended just as well as a resolution. Perhaps, the more courteous 
way is to re-commit with instructions. 



114 EULES OF ORDER. 

186. What is the effect of a motion to accept, or adopt, 
if carried in the affirmative f 

A paper accepted, or adopted by a formal vote of a 
deliberative assembly, thereby becomes the statement, 
or sentiment of the assembly itself; for the acts and 
judgments of the committee, when once adopted in 
due form, are, by that circumstance, made the acts and 
judgments of the body, under whose orders they un- 
dertook the consideration of the subject. 

187. Would it he out of order to, move the acceptance of 
a report, and the adoption of the resolutions thereto ap- 
pended, separately. 

It is not only not out of order, but, in fact, the better 
way, first, to accept the report by a regular motion 
to that effect, and then adopt the resolutions, if satis- 
factory, by a separate vote ; for, in the resolutions, or 
recommendations of a committee, indeed, we have a 
direct expression of the conclusions to which they have 
been led, and therefore a distinct motion to adopt these, 
as the conclusions of the body at large seems highly 
proper, if not essential. 

188. What difference of import is there, in this connec- 
tion, between the terms "accept" and " adopt?" 

Accept and adopt, when applied generally to a report, 
or other document submitted to a deliberative body, 
are usually understood to denote the same thing ; but 
a more discriminating usage confines the term "adopt" 
to that act by which the assembly directly and dis- 
tinctly take, and treat as their own the resolutions, or 



ORDER OF BUSINESS. 115 

recommendations of a report, or other like document ; 
while the term " accept " is employed in relation to pa- 
pers containing statements of fact, arguments, or rea- 
sonings, out of which conclusions are to be educed. 

189. When the report of a committee consists of a paper 
referred to them for alteration, or amendment, what is the 
order of proceeding f 

"When the report of a committee embraces merely a 
paper with amendments, the chairman of the commit- 
tee reads the amendments with the coherence or proper 
connections, explains the reasons of the alterations, if 
necessary, and so exhibits, in order throughout, all the 
changes proposed. The report is then, of course, put 
in charge of the clerk, or secretary. 

When taken up for consideration by the assembly, 
the amendments only are read by the clerk, or secre- 
tary. The President then reads each in course, and sub- 
mits them successively to a vote of the assembly. 

190. Is it not allowable, during this process, for mem- 
bers to offer other amendments? 

While the assembly is engaged in disposing of amend- 
ments proposed by the committee, it is not in order to 
receive any other amendment, except, of course, an 
amendment to an amendment, which must then be 
made, or not made at all. 

191. What opportunity, if any, is allowed for amend- 
ments by the assembly ? 

The amendments suggested by the committee being 
decided upon, the President before putting the question 



116 EULES OF ORDEK. 

on the whole paper, as amended, or not, as the case may 
stand, waits a moment to hear, if any, other amend- 
ments from the assembly, which are then in order. 

192. May a subject on which a report has once been 
made and presented, be re-committed f 

A subject may be re-committed as often as the as- 
sembly please, either to the same, or to a different 
committee. 

193. When, if ever, is the proper time to hear a report 
from the minority of a committee f 

The motion to hear the report of the minority should 
follow immediately the reading of that from the ma- 
jority. Thereafter, both reports being the property of 
the house, they may be disposed of according to the 
pleasure of the assembly* 

194. If for any cause, a committee find it inexpedient, 

* On the mode of proceeding respecting a minority report, 
Mathias (page 38) has the following: — 

" Should a committee not be unanimous in opinion, and those in 
the minority be desirous of placing their views before the meeting, 
the matter should be introduced immediately after the majority re- 
port has been read. A member will then move that ' the report 
and resolution thereto attached be postponed for the present, for 
the purpose of enabling the minority to present their report.' If 
this motion prevails, as is almost always the case, the minority re- 
port will be immediately presented, received and read. It is then 
in order, on motion, to take up for consideration the resolution at- 
tached to either of the reports. 

" If the minority are not prepared to report, a motion may be made 
to postpone the majority report until the next meeting, in order to 
enable the minority to get their report ready." — See answer to 
question 63, p. 6-6. 



ORDER OF BUSINESS. 117 

or impracticable, to render a report, what course is taken 
in relation to such a committee f 

When, for any cause, a committee deem it inexpe- 
dient to make a report, the chairman, or some other 
member of that committee should, when the report is 
called for, rise in his place, and, after making a state- 
ment of the case, move that the committee be dis- 
charged from the further consideration of the subject. 

195. Supposing a paper consisting of several distinct 
propositions, or of a series of resolutions, to be laid before 
an assembly, what order is observed in taking them up f 

In considering a document embracing several prop- 
ositions, or resolutions, the entire paper should first 
be read by the secretary. This enables the members to 
get a general and connected view of the whole matter. 

Then, in order the more closely to consider, and, if 
necessary, to amend each part in detail, the natural 
order is to begin at the beginning, and go regularly 
through by paragraphs or resolutions : the President 
reading each in its turn, and pausing at the end of 
each to receive and put, if need be, any amendments 
offered.* 

When all this is done, the President submits the 
whole paper, amended, or unamended, as the case may 
be, to a vote of the assembly on its final adoption. 

* This order is so rigidly adhered to in Parliament that, when 
the latter part of a paper has been amended, it is not allowable to 
go back and make alterations in the previous sections, or paragraphs. 
In the Senate of the United States, however, it is not forbidden to 
recur to a former part of a paper, under deliberation, for the pur- 
pose of amending it, 



118 EULES OF OEDEE. 

196. In the case of a series of resolutions, is it not usual 
to consider and adopt them separately f 

It is quite common, indeed it is the general custom, 
in case of a series of resolutions being laid before a 
deliberative body, to put the question on each resolu- 
tion separately : the preamble, if any, being reserved, 
and acted upon last of all. 

197. Why should the preamble he reserved to the last? 
The preamble should be reserved till the resolutions 

have been disposed of, because in the event of their 
being amended, it might require alteration to render it 
appropriate, or should the resolutions be negatived, it 
would, of course, fall to the ground altogether. 

198. Can more than one subject be under consideration 
at the same time ? 

There can be but one main, or principal subject un- 
der consideration in a deliberative assembly at once, 
but there may be pending at the same time, a number 
of incidental, or subsidiary questions, all which have 
been explained already in the answers to questions un- 
der the head of Privileged Questions. 

199. When the business of a meeting seems to be fin- 
ished, what course is taken by the President f 

Whenever a pause or cessation occurs in the pro- 
ceedings, the President simply says : " There is no busi- 
ness before the meeting" This either brings up new 
business, or a motion to adjourn. 



SECTION VII. 



ORDER OF DEBATE. 



200. When is it in order to rise and speah on a motion, 
or proposition f 

As a motion, or proposition is not fairly before a de- 
liberative assembly, until moved, seconded, and stated 
from the chair, it is never in order to rise and speak 
on it, until it has thus formally been introduced. 

201. May the President engage in the debate f 

It being plainly incompatible with a due discharge 
of his appropriate duties for the President, as a gen- 
eral thing, to take part in the debates, he is not al- 
lowed to do so, except in cases growing out of, or nat- 
urally belonging to his official position. Thus, he may, 
and ought, when desirable, to explain points of order ; 
he may give information of facts bearing upon the busi- 
ness under deliberation ; and, in the event of an appeal 
from his decision on questions of order, he is free to 
engage in any debate thereupon. 

When, however, the presiding officer does rise to 
speak, he is entitled to be heard even before a mem- 
ber who may be already on the floor. In such case, 



120 



RULES OF ORDER. 



the member standing should take his seat, till the 
President has finished. 

202. Can a member once fairly in possession of the 
floor, be refused a hearing ? 

He that fairly gets the floor, is fully entitled to be 
heard. He cannot be interrupted by a call for adjourn- 
ment, or for the orders of the day, or for the ques- 
tion ; for this is not making a regular motion. " Such 
calls are themselves," says Jefferson, "breaches of 
order." 

203. In case of a dispute, or of conflicting claims to the 
floor, who is to decide f 

If several members rise and address the chair at 
once, or nearly at once, the President is to grant the pre- 
cedence to him whose voice is first heard. But it is 
competent for any member to question this decision, 
and to ask a vote of the assembly thereupon. In case 
of a vote, the question is first taken on the claim 
of the member, in whose favor the President has 
decided. 



204. Is it ever in order to interrupt a member when 
speaking on a subject before the house ? 

It is never in order, as a general rule, to interrupt a 
member while addressing the house, except by a call 
to order ;* that is, he cannot rightfully be interrupted 
in his speech by a member rising and proposing to 

* It is, in some assemblies, allowable for a member to interrupt a 
speaker in order to make an explanation. 



ORDER OF DEBATE. 121 

adjourn, or making any other like privileged mo- 
tion* 

Yet this rule is not to be so construed or interpreted 
as to preclude all possible cases or contingences, for 
such a construction of it would sometimes work great- 
er mischief than that which it is intended to prevent. 
Thus, cases may arise, in which it may be of the high- 
est moment to interrupt a speaker, in order to announce 
facts or information of immediate and pressing interest 
or necessity. 

The whole aim of the rule is to secure a member 
who has the floor, and is speaking, from all wanton or 
abusive interruption, as long as he himself observes 
the rules of order and the decencies of debate. 

205. Does a call to order prevent a speaker from 
finishing his speech f 

When the question raised by a call to order has been 
decided, the speaker is still in possession of his right 
to proceed ; nor can he be arrested, as before said, even 
by a motion to adjourn. His right is to a full hearing. 

There are some deliberative bodies, in which a rule 
is laid down, fixing the limits in respect to time, within 
which every speaker is to be confined. But, even 
where no such rule exists, a tedious or offensive speak- 
er, though his right to proceed is not questioned, is gen- 
erally made, by certain indications of impatience in the 
audience, to see the propriety of closing his speech. 

* Sometimes, in order to hasten the decision of a question some 
member will call out — Question ! Question ! even while a speaker is 
on the floor. This is usually regarded as the greatest rudeness ; 
though often resorted to in order to get rid of a tiresome speaker. 

6 



122 RULES OF ORDER. 

206. Is a speaker who, for some special purpose, volun- 
tarily yields the floor in favor af another, entitled as soon 
as the object of the interruption is gained, to go on with his 



As a matter of favor, or concession, but not as a mat- 
ter of right, a speaker who temporarily yields the floor 
in favor of another, is generally permitted, immediately 
after the interruption, to resume his remarks. If the 
privilege be denied, he cannot claim it as a right. 

207. Does a person speaking in a deliberative assembly, 
address himself formally to the assembly, or to the presid- 
ing officer t 

Whenever a member of a deliberative assembly pro- 
poses to speak upon a matter in debate, he is expected 
to rise in his place, with head uncovered, and address 
himself, inform, directly to the presiding officer: say- 
ing, "Mr. President, Mr. Chairman, 11 or whatever else 
may be his title in the body. Thereupon the President 
addresses the speaker by name, and so introduces 
and commends him to the attention of the meet- 
ing. 

208. When a member is speaking, is it in order to des- 
ignate other members to vjhom he wishes to refer, by their 
names f 

It is not in order, neither is it considered in good 
taste, in debate, for a speaker to designate other mem- 
bers by their names : the modes of expression for this 
purpose being, — " The gentleman who has just taken his 
seat, 11 or, " The member on the other side of the house, 11 or, 
" The last speaker but one, 11 or some other like indication. 



OKDEK OF DEBATE. 123 

209. What restriction, if any, is a speaker under in re- 
gard to the mode of discussing a subject f 

Every speaker is bound to confine himself to the 
question. This is the common and necessary rule. 
But it must be liberally interpreted, and never, under 
color of cutting off digressions, be made to hinder a 
full and free expression of sentiment. 

210. Under what restrictions, if any, is a speaker, in 
relation to his mode of treating other members engaged in 
the debate f 

Every speaker is bound to avoid personalities ; that 
is, he is not to use harsh, reviling, or unmannerly 
words of any kind in relation to others engaged in the 
debate ; but to exercise, in all respects, a courteous 
and gentlemanly deportment : principles and meas- 
ures, not the character and motives of those who advo- 
cate them, being the proper subject of animadversion 
and reprobation. 

211. Under what restriction, if any, is a speaker in 
respect to his mode of treating the resolves, or other proceed- 
ings of the assembly f 

Every speaker is bound to refrain from the use of 
reproachful or indecent language in regard to the pre- 
vious acts, or decisions of the assembly, or any of its 
committees. He may, however, offer and support a 
motion to rescind any act or resolution of the body, 
and in so doing, indulge in the language of invective 
or reprobation, so long as he violates not the rules of 
debate. 



124 KULES OF ORDER. 

212. Is it in order for a member to be present, when the 
assembly are deliberating upon matters, in which he is per- 
sonally concerned f 

It is neither in order, nor in decency for a member 
to be present in the assembly, when he is personally 
interested in the matter under debate. 

213. What, if anything, is done, when a member in 
addressing the assembly, makes use of language that is in- 
sulting to another member, or to the body at large f 

When a member in speaking, indulges in language 
abusive or insulting to other members, or to the body 
generally, he is usually interrupted in his speech by 
members calling him to order. In that case, the party 
aggrieved, or objecting to the language, is requested by 
the President, or proceeds of his own accord, either to 
repeat, or reduce to writing the exact words complained 
of, so that they may be recorded by the clerk, or sec- 
retary. 

214. Must the words be so recorded f 

The words, upon being repeated, may be, or appear 
to be, less offensive, or insulting than had been sup- 
posed. In that event, the President may hesitate, and 
unless forced by calls to that effect from the assembly, 
or by a resolution duly passed, he may, in his discre- 
tion, allow the affair to pass over by not directing the 
clerk to take the words down. If that, however, be 
the clear wish of the assembly, however expressed, the 
words must be recorded, and the matter in due form 
settled. 



ORDER OF DEBATE. 125 

215. Supposing the objectionable words to be taken down 
by order of the President, or that of the assembly, what 
follows ? 

The words being recorded by the clerk, or secretary, 
are to be read to the member who is charged with 
using them ; and, if he denies them to be the words 
which he used, the judgment, or testimony of the as- 
sembly is taken by a vote on the question whether the 
words recorded by the clerk, and imputed to him, be 
really his, or not. Before taking the question, how- 
ever, it is competent for the assembly so to amend, or 
alter the words taken down, as to bring them, if pos- 
sible, nearer to what, in their judgment, the offending 
member actually did say. 

216. What if the member does not deny the words? 

If the words imputed be not denied, or if the assem- 
bly decides them to be truly reported, the member is at 
liberty either to justify them, or to show that, as he 
used them, they are not liable to the charge of being 
disorderly, or finally, to make such apology as is due 
under the circumstances. If the justification, or ex- 
planation, be deemed satisfactory, or the apology, if he 
make onej acceptable, there the matter terminates ; 
and he is permitted to resume, and go on with his 
speech. 

217. How is it ascertained whether, or not the assembly 
is satisfied with the justification, or explanation, or apol- 
ogy, whichever it may be f 

Whether, in such case, the assembly is satisfied, or 



126 RULES OF ORDER. 

not, is known by their silent acquiescence : * the pre- 
sumption being, that where none object, all agree. 

But should any two members insist, that the sense 
of the body should be taken on the character of the 
words, or on the guilt or innocence of the person using 
them, the member must withdraw before that question 
is stated. After his withdrawal, the question is to be 
taken, and the penalty, if any, fixed by a vote of the 
assembly. 

218. Must the complaint against a member for using 
offensive language, be entered immediately f 

A complaint against a member for using disorderly, 
or offensive words, must be entered, if at all, at the time 
the offence is given.* This is a most necessary rule, for 
if the words be not written down immediately, mistakes 
will occur, and no security will be afforded to any one 
against mistaken or malicious charges of disorder. 

If, therefore, the speech of another member, or any 
other business, be allowed to intervene between the 
time of using the words alleged to be disorderly, and 
that of making the complaint, such complaint is not to 
be entertained. 

219. Suppose, at any time, the presiding officer finds it 
impossible, by calls to order, or appeals to the meeting, to 
restrain a member, disposed to be disorderly, what is his 
last resort f 

In case of persistent disorder, on the part of a mem- 
ber, it is the duty of the presiding officer to designate 
by name the person so behaving and so bring the of- 
fender before the assembly. 

* Compare however Jefferson and Cushing on this point. 



ORDER OF DEBATE. 127 

220. What steps, in such case, may the assembly take f 
The assembly may, and ought to require the mem- 
ber, thus offending, to withdraw : allowing hini, how- 
ever, an opportunity, if he wishes it, to explain, or ex- 
culpate himself. Then, after a statement of the nature 
of the offense from the President, the assembly should 
decide upon the punishment, if any, due to the trans- 
gression. 

221. Suppose the assembly, generally, persist in disorder, 
what is the President to do f 

If, after proper efforts to preserve order, there is a 
general and persistent disregard to his appeals and to 
the character and claims of his office, his obligation 
further to attempt the control of the meeting, of course, 
ceases, and he may, therefore, justly abandon the as- 
sembly to its own guidance and discretion. 

222. What rule, if any, might prevent the occurrence 
of a state of things like that supposed in the answer to 
last question ? 

If each individual, whether officer or private mem- 
ber, would but honestly labor to aid the main object 
of the meeting, which is, or ought to be, the elicitation 
of truth and the free expression of the ascertained will 
of the body, such a state of things as that supposed, 
in the case above, would certainly never occur. The 
rules of order which have been stated and explained, 
in the preceding pages, will be found sufficient, if duly 
observed, to secure the decent and orderly transaction 
of business in almost any deliberative assembly, provi- 
ded only the spirit of truth, justice and courtesy pre- 
vail among its members. 



SECTION VIII. 

DEBATING SOCIETIES. 

"HEBATINGr Societies, wisely conducted, cannot be 
•** too highly commended. They are, indeed, excel- 
lent schools ; but, like all other schools, good or bad, 
according to the skill and intelligence with which they 
are managed. To make them at all subservient to the 
proper design of their institution, the exercises in them 
should ever be regarded as important business trans- 
actions. They will, indeed, always yield entertain- 
ment; but any view of their character, that makes 
amusement their principal design, cannot fail materially 
to diminish their utility. 

In adopting and signing a written Constitution, each 
member thereby pledges himself to meet its require- 
ments. It is a contract, promising rewards, but im- 
posing obligations. It should, therefore, be faithfully 
observed ; for one, among many things, that may be 
acquired, or strengthened, in a society of this kind, is 
the habit of being punctual in the performance of 
duties. He that habitually violates engagements, vol- 
untarily assumed, however unimportant they may 
seem, is in danger of falling into precisely the same 
practice respecting matters of higher moment. 



DEBATING SOCIETIES. 129 

In respect to the discussion and management of 
questions in general, we have elsewhere* spoken; 
but there is a class of questions frequently coming up, 
that seem specially proper to be noticed in this place. 
I mean questions relating to the provisions, limitations 
and restrictions, made and imposed in the Constitution 
and By-Lawsf of the Society. 

Discussions of this kind, though often avoided, as 
irksome and profitless, are, when rightly managed, not 
only interesting, but often highly beneficial. They 
serve to induce thought in relation to the nature of 
those fundamental laws and powers in a community, 
under which, and in conformity with which, all other 
laws and powers whatever must be made and exer- 
cised : dispelling the vagueness that, in youthful minds, 
almost always attaches to the idea of a Constitution, 
and habituating them to consider the various distinc- 
tions and relations indicated, when we speak of Con- 
stitutional, Legislative, Judicial, and Executive powers. 
It must not, therefore, be thought a waste of time prop- 
erly to discuss, interpret, and rigidly apply the pro- 
visions and requisitions of the Constitution and the 

* See page 132. 

f The relation of By-Laws to the Constitution is well indicated 
in the derivation of the term. The term by-law or bye-law is made 
up of the word law, and the Danish by or bye, which means a town : 
the combination meaning, literally, a town-law. Hence, it signifies 
generally, a special, or particular law, made by a corporation, or 
other association to regulate such of their affairs as are not provided 
for by the general, or constitutional law of the land. By-laws, there- 
fore, confer no new powers, but rather regulate the exercise of 
those already in existence. For the form of a Constitution and By- 
Laws for a Debating Society, see Section XIV. 

6* 



130 DEBATING SOCIETIES. * 

B j-Laws ; for out of this practice may come habits of 
mind of the highest service in subsequent life. 

Another hint, proper here to be given, is, that, as 
the object of the Society is the moral and intellectual 
improvement of its members, no one should be impa- 
tient of criticism. Candid criticism cannot be too 
highly appreciated ; that criticism, I mean, that aims 
to discriminate between the right and the wrong, the 
good and the bad, the beauties and the deformities of 
a literary performance. Such criticism, and none other, 
should ever be indulged, should be sought, not 
shunned ; for by that are we enabled to see and to hear 
ourselves somewhat, as others- see and hear us, and so 
to follow more closely the path that leads to improve- 
ment. 

Were it necessary to produce examples illustrative 
of the beneficial influence of debating societies, it would 
be no difficult task to cite many great names, — names 
of men who, in early life, eagerly availed themselves 
of the advantages of organizations of this nature. The 
able and dignified Lord Mansfield, for instance, found 
in a debating society, wherein many legal questions 
were discussed, the motive to those extensive and ac- 
curate preparations which, in subsequent years, be- 
came so highly valuable in his illustrious career. 

Edmund Burke, perhaps, the greatest deliberative 
orator that ever appeared on the floor of the British 
House of Commons, is known to have sought discip- 
line in the matter of public speaking, in the exercises 
of a debating society. 

Charles Fox, who, according to Burke, rose "by 
slow degrees to be the most brilliant and accomplished 



DEBATING SOCIETIES. 131 

debater the world ever saw," was so sensible of the 
advantage of regular and frequent practice, that he ac- 
tually turned the House of Commons into a sort of 
Debating Club for his own personal benefit ; that is, 
he often entered earnestly, as he himself confesses, into 
the discussion of questions which involved for him no 
other or higher interest than that of affording discipline 
in debate. 

Curran, the most unpromising of all aspirants after 
fame in oratory, (Demosthenes not excepted,) derived 
from debating societies the stimulus and the discipline 
by which, in great measure, he ultimately took rank 
among the first of orators. Awkward and ungainly 
in gesture, hasty and inarticulate in utterance, he la- 
bored long and labored hard, with no other result, ap- 
parently, than that of earning the titles, " Stuttering 
Jack" and " Orator Mum." But his failures were really 
only so many pledges of success ; for the process of 
improvement, silent, but sure, was all the while going 
steadily on. 

Henry Clay, a name that at once awakens the recol- 
lection of everything that is, either forceful, or fascinat- 
ing in deliberative eloquence, gained, as is well known, 
no small advantage from his active participation in the 
exercises of a debating society. 

But further specification is needless. Eeason and 
experience alike attest the value of well-regulated 
bodies of this description ; and he is not wise, who dis- 
regards testimony so important and so conclusive. 



SECTION IX. 



MANAGEMENT OF A QUESTION. 



JN all cases, where time is allowed for the study of a 
question previously to its actual discussion, it is, of 
course, the dictate of wisdom to consider carefully be- 
forehand how it should be managed. 

Discussion * implies thorough investigation. It can- 
not be effected without labor ; but, when properly done, 
it amply repays the laborer, by establishing in him 
those habits of inquiry and discrimination, which are 
constantly demanded in the questions of real life. In 
order to aid the young debater in the work of prepara- 
tion, we offer the following general directions.f 

Of all the sources of idle discussion, imprecision in 

* The word discussion, is from the Latin discutio, which is itself 
made up of dis, apart, and quatio, to shake : signifying, of course, the 
shaking apart, that is, the thorough sifting, or examination of a sub- 
ject. 

f These directions, though they embrace some things that have 
regard to the manner and bearing of a debater towards his opponent, 
do not, and are not intended to cover the ground occupied by what 
is usually treated of under the head of the " Order of Debate." For 
remarks, therefore, on the use of personalities and other indecorous 
conduct in debate, see page 123 and following. 



MANAGEMENT OF A QUESTION. 133 

the use of language is, perhaps, the most prolific. 
Hence, the first step towards the right management of 
a question, is to clear it of all verbal obscurity, that is, 
put it in language the plainest and most precise practi- 
cable. 

But a question may be stated in a manner sufficient- 
ly intelligible, and, after all, be misunderstood, or not 
understood at all, for want of reasonable regard to the 
meaning, or application of particular terms. A second 
direction, therefore, not less important than the first, is 
to ascertain by study the exact signification of every 
leading term in the question. Dr. Watts, in speaking 
on this subject, says: — "This is so necessary a thing, 
that, without it, men will be exposed to such sort of 
ridiculous contests, as was found one day between two un- 
learned combatants, Sartor and Sutor, who assaulted and 
defended the doctrine of Transubstantiation with much 
zeal and violence. But Latino happening to come into 
their company, and inquiring the subject of their dis- 
pute, asked each of them what he meant by that long, 
hard word Transubstantiation. Sutor readily informed 
him, that he understood it bowing at the name of Jesus. 
But Sartor assured him, that he meant nothing but bow- 
ing at the high altar. ' ISTo wonder,' then said Latino, 
1 that you cannot agree, when you neither understand 
one another, nor the word about which you contend.' " 

The world has always been full of Sartors and Su- 
tors, that is, people fond of debate, but often "under- 
standing neither what they say, nor whereof they af- 
firm."* He that will not study to avoid their error, 
can never reasonably hope to be a good debater. 

* 1 Timothy, ch. i., v. 9. 



134 MANAGEMENT OF A QUESTION. 

Another direction, which has often been given, but 
which cannot be too earnestly inculcated, is to ascer- 
tain precisely the aim of the question, and keep it al- 
ways steadily in view. Digression is the ignis fatuus 
of discussion. It misleads by the appearance of utility : 
luring the mind into devious paths, and dissipating its 
powers in idle pursuit. We should guard against it 
in ourselves, because it is hostile to the best exercise 
of the reasoning faculty. We should guard against it 
in others, because it wastes time, fatigues an audience, 
and — sometimes by chance, sometimes by design — 
defeats the only proper end of discussion — the elicita- 
tion of truth. 

The language of the question being clear, and clearly 
understood, and the precise point of investigation fairly 
before the mind, the next thing is to consider care- 
fully what may be said on both sides. Assume, for 
the time being, the position of an opponent ; endeavor 
to produce and appreciate at its full value, every argu- 
ment likely to be employed against you, and so com- 
pare in detail the strength and resources of your own 
side with those of your adversary. 

This will prevent you from being suddenly surprised 
by the presence and power of unexpected arguments, 
and give you all the advantage of seeming to know 
beforehand what is coming out on the opposite side. 
It will inspire respect in your adversaries, and impart 
caution to their modes of attacking your positions, and 
so leave on the minds of the audience the silent, but 
strong impression of probability, as belonging to what 
you affirm. 

If it be necessary to elucidate, or confirm your views 



MANAGEMENT OF A QUESTION. 135 

by reference to history, geography, statistics, or any- 
thing else derivable from books, be accurate, to the 
last degree, in whatever you quote or state, as matter 
of fact. This is a most important precept. Minute 
accuracy begets confidence. It lends to the speaker 
the charm of reliability. Many a man who has no 
other merit scarcely, is always heard with decided in- 
terest, because he is known to be scrupulously exact 
in his statements. 

Having duly considered the question, and collected 
all the materials which you propose to employ in the 
debate, the next thing is to arrange them to the best 
advantage. "Every mind," says an able writer, "in- 
stinctively requires order," and to this we add, that 
no man can ever succeed, as an orator, who disregards 
this instinct of our nature. What particular order, how- 
gver, shall, in any given case, be adopted, must, as a 
matter of course, be left to your own discretion. What- 
ever it is, let it be clear ; and, when once indicated, ad- 
here to it throughout. This will enable your hearers 
to follow you with ease, to remember your positions, 
and measure accurately the force of your arguments. 

Another direction, that will be found extremely use- 
ful, if duly regarded, is, always to treat the arguments 
of your opponents with fairness and courtesy. Nothing 
is ever gained by affecting to treat what is said by 
those opposed to you, with disdain, or by perverting 
their views, or by seeking to undervalue their force. 

The better way always is to allow what is due to 
the opposite side, and show, if possible, its weakness 
by clear, forcible, and convincing argumentation. 
There is force in fairness ; for it implies a love of truth. 



136 MANAGEMENT OF A QUESTION. 

There is power in politeness ; for it moves the heart, 
and begets the impression of a generous adversary. 

The last precept which we shall here endeavor to 
inculcate, is always to seem sincere in the search after 
truth. In order, however, to seem sincere, you must 
really he so ; for sincerity is a coin hard to be counter- 
feited. Be the copy ever so skillfully executed, it will 
always fall far short of the original, and always, con- 
sequently, be more or less liable to detection. 

Every hollow profession, when once fairly detected, 
is justly treated as an act of imposition. Even the 
suspicion of insincerity is prej adicial, in the highest 
degree, if not absolutely fatal, to the influence of a 
public speaker. In debate, therefore, as in all the other 
transactions of life, the maxim is fully verified, — " Hon- 
esty is the best policy." 

But a most serious hinderance to the virtue which 
we are here commending, is found in obstinacy, — a 
quality usually in close alliance with ignorance and 
vanity. Goldsmith's country schoolmaster is a char- 
acter which, in the feature now under notice, is often 
realized in all human circles and professions : — 

" In arguing, too, the parson owned his skill, 
For, e'en though vanquished, he could argue still." 



SECTION X. 

DEBATES IN FULL. 

UKDEE this head we here insert a couple of debates, 
for the purpose of affording a sort of practical il- 
lustration of the mode of conducting a public discuss- 
ion. They are, however, in no sense set up as mod- 
els, in respect to style, expression, or logic. Theirs is 
an humbler, though a useful aim. They are designed 
simply to impart, or indicate something of the form and 
spirit of those real transactions which almost daily oc- 
cur in deliberative assemblies. They are merely sug- 
gestive. 

These debates may be used as exercises in declama- 
tion, each speaker being represented by a different per- 
son. In such case, moreover, the speakers might be 
encouraged to add to, or amplify the arguments and 
illustrations in their several parts, and so give a sort of 
original interest to the exercise. Especial care should 
be taken to preserve the formalities and the decorum 
proper to the occasion ; for these are things that be- 
come familiar only by practice. 



DEBATES IN FULL. 



DEBATE. 



WHICH IS THE MORE PERNICIOUS CHARACTER, THE 
SLANDERER OR THE FLATTERER? 

FIRST SPEAKER. 

Mr. President, — It will not, I hope, be thought cap- 
tious in me, if I venture to intimate my doubts about 
the wisdom of proposing such a question, as that which 
is to form the topic of this discussion. If, in so doing, 
I should be considered as intentionally impugning the 
judgment, or wounding the feelings of those whose 
province it is to furnish us with subjects of debate, I 
should be sadly misinterpreted. I beg leave, therefore, 
in the outset, to disclaim any and every purpose of dis- 
paragement, that might be inferred from the position 
which I take on the present occasion. 

Evil speaking, sir, which is the Bible expression for 
slander, is. a crime of the darkest character ; so much 
more heinous than flattery, that it seems almost like 
sharing in the guilt of slander to assume, as this ques- 
tion does, that the two things differ from each other so 
slightly, as to make it difficult to determine their com- 
parative iniquity and enormity. 

Slander, Mr. President, is among the most cruel, as 
it certainly is among the most criminal things in the 
world. It justly ranks, in the common estimation, with 
theft and with murder ; and often, therefore, in meta- 
phor, does it bear these odious names. Nothing, ac- 
cordingly, is more common, even in prose, to say no- 
thing of poetry, than such expressions as, "to rob one 



THE SLANDERER AND THE FLATTERER. 139 

of his good name," "to stab one's reputation:" steal- 
ing, stabbing and slandering being, it would seem, 
closely allied in guilt, and naturally associated in the 
mind. 

Though these, sir, are my views of slander, I would 
not, on that account, have you imagine, that I stand 
here as the apologist of flattery. On the contrary, I 
am prepared, on every proper occasion, to condemn 
this latter vice in terms quite as severe as the most 
rigid moralist could either wish, or require. 

Still, sir, that would not prove the justice of the 
comparison here instituted. Flattery is bad ; slander 
is bad ; but are they equally bad, or so nearly alike in 
power for mischief, as to warrant serious doubts about 
their comparative malignity ? Certainly not. 

In the flatterer, generally, you find no evil intent. 
His conduct exhibits weakness, rather than wickedness ; 
weakness deplorable, indeed, but not altogether unami- 
able. In the slanderer, on the contrary, you may 
always detect the presence of malignant principle, — the 
pointed, premeditated purpose to work the ruin of 
character. Like the race whose wickedness brought 
destruction by the flood, " every imagination of the 
thoughts of his heart is only evil continually."* 

Even in their mildest developments, these two char- 
acters differ immeasurably. There is a flattery, mov- 
ing gently, and only by implication ; there is a slander, 
moving secretly, and only by insinuation. The former 
is delicate, not venturing to appear in words. The 
latter is cunning, not daring to deal in direct accusa- 

* Genesis, ch. vi., v. 5. 



140 



DEBATES IN" FULL. 



tion. The one is cheerful, and hopes to win by the 
appearance of admiration. The other is grave, and 
calculates to succeed by an air of mystery. In the 
one, you see the semblance of deference and candor ; 
in the other, you observe the look of shrewdness and 
watchful suspicion. The one bows, it may be, with 
simulated reverence; the other shrugs the shoulder, 
and labors to act out the villany which he has not the 
courage to utter. 

But, sir, I feel that, in pursuing this comparison, I 
am, as it were, doing violence to reason : undertaking 
to force the application of a standard which is obviously 
illiberal and unjust. To me, the question seems not 
only far-fetched, but absurd. It is comparing moun- 
tains with mole-hills. It is asking whether the bite 
of a flea is more fatal than that of a mad dog ; whether 
the mosquito infuses a poison more subtle and deadly 
than that of the rattlesnake ; whether flakes of fleecy 
snow, gently falling on the traveller's head, are more 
terribly destructive than the weight and might of the 
irresistible avalanche. 

It may be, sir, that I am mistaken in this view of 
the case. If so, I hope soon to be enlightened. But, 
with my present convictions, right or wrong, I can 
see nothing to dispute about. There is no debatable 
ground in the question ; at least, so it seems to me, 
and, for that reason, I shall take my seat, and wait, as 
befits me, the issue of that light, whencesoever it may 
come, that is destined to confirm, or overthrow the 
conclusion I have reached. 



THE SLANDERER AND THE FLATTERER. 141 



SECOND SPEAKER. 

Mr. President, — The gentleman to whom we have 
just listened, finds, it seems, no sufficient ground of 
comparison between slander and flattery. He won- 
ders, why such a question should ever have been in- 
troduced, and seems really afraid, lest, by the formal 
discussion of it, our reputation, if not for sanity, at 
least for soundness of judgment, may be seriously im- 
paired. 

I do not, sir, I must say, share with him in his 
amiable solicitude, and, therefore, hope sincerely that 
this debate, which he so much deprecates, may, at 
least, prove equal to the task of removing all his pain- 
ful forebodings. 

I am far, sir, from thinking with him, that slander 
and flattery are divided by such immeasurable dissim- 
ilarity. With him, flattery wears many objectionable 
features ; but, after all, she is not utterly vile. There 
is, he appears to think, something of fascination in her 
air, something of sweetness in her tones and modula- 
tions, nay, something even of benevolence in her dis- 
position, which wonderfully atones for all her defects 
and delinquencies. 

In slander, however, he finds nothing but evil, un- 
mixed and unmitigated. It is to him what Polyphemus 
was to the terrified Trojans, — 

" Monstrum horrendum, inform e, ingens."* 

Now, sir, I am inclined to regard this view of the 
* A monster terrible, deformed, and bnge % 



142 DEBATES m FULL. 

case, as hasty ; founded rather in first impressions and 
particular prejudices, than in any careful and profound 
analysis of the things themselves. Flattery seems, so 
to speak, to have struck his fancy. He, accordingly, 
views her only in the distance, and, 'as here, as else, 
where, " distance lends enchantment to the view," he 
is captivated with the semblance of excellence, or, at 
least, softened by the smiling, but deceptive aspect of 
truth and candor, which she wears. 

But, sir, be not deceived. Bring this fair creature 
into nearer view. Take off her smooth disguises, and 
resolve all her plausibilities into plain matter of fact ; 
then place her side by side with slander, and you will 
be astonished to find in these two characters, not only 
similarity, but absolute identity. Both originate in 
the spirit of deception. Alike in essence and in aim, 
they go forth, differing only in outward accidents and 
circumstances, deceiving, and to deceive continually. 

It is idle, then, sir, to dwell upon the pleasing as- 
pects of flattery, as constituting higher claims to 
innocence than those that may be urged in favor of 
slander. These seductive charms, rightly interpreted, 
are only so many withering blasts of testimony against 
her. Is the poison which is sweet less fatal than that 
which is bitter ? Was the bite of the asp, though it 
worked by slow degrees, and gentle stupefaction, less 
fatal to Cleopatra, than would have been that of the 
more malignant adder, which advances by rapid steps 
and violent convulsions ? 

But again, sir, I say, be not deceived. If flattery is 
to be excused, or palliated on the ground of external 
appearances, I am for extending the same favor to 



THE SLANDERER AND THE FLATTERER. 143 

slander. It, also, has its fair side, its ingenuous air, 
its agreeable professions. 

The slanderer is no novice in the arts of pretension. 
He covers his iniquity in the most judicious and skill- 
ful manner. If there be merit in a mask, he is fully 
equal to the flatterer in the ease and dexterity, with 
which he assumes and wears that article. He has the 
show of public virtue. He affects to believe what he 
affirms, and for the sake of others, he seems ready to 
risk the perils that ever belong to the exposer of vicious 
persons. His position is that of a friend warning us 
against danger. He often leads us to regard him as 
the best friend of virtue, because he appears to be the 
most fearless denouncer of vice. In short, he plays 
the hypocrite. But this is exactly what the flatterer is 
doing all the while ; and, in this, if he excels the slan- 
derer, he thereby only proves, that, for all the purposes 
of mischief, he is more facile and fertile in expedients. 

I have thus, sir, I hope, shown you, that slander and 
flattery, so far from being utterly unlike, are really 
identical in essence, and alike, also, in some of their 
more important manifestations. If this be so, then is 
the question before us not liable to the critical objec- 
tions, which have been started against it, — then may 
we proceed, in the discussion, without serious appre- 
hension about the safety of our reputation for judg- 
ment and discrimination. 

Having disposed of the gentleman's cavils and argu- 
ments, as best I could, I beg leave to close my remarks 
by directing your attention to one peculiar trait of the 
flatterer, wherein he seems to me to surpass incompar- 
ably every degree of enormity, of which the most will- 






144 DEBATES m FULL. 

ful slanderer is capable. It is this : the slanderer at- 
tacks, perhaps ruins, your reputation ; but the flatterer 
assaults, and is most certain to destroy your character. 
Character, you know, sir, is what we are ; reputation 
what we seem, or are said to be. 

The slanderer seeks to injure us in the estimation 
of others. He often succeeds in his purpose ; but, if 
we are guiltless of his charges, if we are really pure in 
heart and pure in hand, though our reputation may be 
injured, our character is still unhurt. We have the 
mens conscia recti, the mind conscious of the right, 
which enables us to rejoice even in the midst of suf- 
fering. Aristides was driven from his native country 
by a successful assault upon his reputation, and Soc- 
rates drank the fatal hemlock, because of similarly foul 
aspersions ; but both being pure in character, and strong 
in conscious virtue, the one only prayed, that his coun 
try might never be in circumstances to need his return 
while the other, instead of quailing under the near ap 
proach of death, calmly assured his infatuated judges 
" that an honest man needs to fear no evil, either in this, 
or the future life" 

But, sir, the flatterer aims at a nearer and a dearer 
object. He studies out "the soft approaches of the 
heart," watches its weaker inclinations, and gently in- 
sinuates the baneful seeds of vanity. By this subtle 
process, the understanding is gradually darkened, the 
judgment is warped, conceit is taken for actual attain- 
ment, and all the foundations of solid worth are effect- 
ually undermined. Thence comes the custom, and 
out of that the habit, of seeking in pretension a sub- 
stitute for possession, accepting the praise, without 



THE SLANDERER AND THE FLATTERER. 145 

having the reality of merit, and, in a word, relying for 
success and for satisfaction on a reputation unsupport- 
ed by correspondent character, — the shadow, instead 
of the substance, of virtue. 

This, sir, is the legitimate consequence of successful 
flattery. If slander tarnish our good name, we may 
hope to brighten it again by dint of good living ; but 
if, by the hand of flattery, however fair, however deli- 
cate, the fountains of good living be themselves roiled 
and poisoned, whence, O whence, shall the deluded 
soul look for the means of retrievement ? 



THIRD SPEAKER. 

Mr. President, — I listened with pleasure to the mem- 
ber who has just addressed us ; but not with the pleas- 
ure that results from satisfaction with a sound course 
of argument. If clearness of diction were always sy- 
nonymous with soundness of logic, I should doubtless be 
tempted, by the seemingly transparent view of the case, 
which he has presented, to yield the position which he 
claims in this discussion. 

He assumes, without a shadow of proof, that all 
flattery is designed to do mischief. It is by this as- 
sumption, in great measure, that he is enabled to com- 
plete his view of the absolute identity of slander and 
flattery. But for this, the parallel would not hold out. 

Now, sir, here I must take issue withhim. I deny, 
that flattery uniformly aims at mischief to the party 
flattered. On the contrary, nothing can be more certain, 
than that, in most cases, as intimated by the opening 
speaker, the motive of the flatterer is a kind, a benev- 

7 



146 DEBATES IN FULL. 

olent one. I do not say, — I do not mean to say, that 
this is the best, or even a good way, of exercising kindly 
feeling. I merely note the fact. 

If this be so, and I see not how it can be reasonably 
controverted, then, sir, the argument derived from it 
remains yet unanswered. And that argument seems 
to me quite irresistible ; for the notion of kindly in- 
tention is altogether incompatible with the idea of 
slander. In a thousand ways, may flattery be employ- 
ed, with comparative innocence, if not with positive ad- 
vantage ; in not one is it possible to conceive of slander 
without guilt of the deepest dye. 

The mother, watching with fond anxiety the first 
efforts of her child to walk, to sing, to read, to do any- 
thing yet unlearned or unattempted, may innocently, 
we should think, encourage hope and stimulate exer- 
tion by the use of flattering words. The teacher whose 
task is to study all those arts, by which the youthful 
mind is roused to energy and perseverance in the pur- 
suit of knowledge, can hardly be denied the agency ot 
flattering expressions of approbation in the prosecution 
of his arduous duties. Shall the generous youth, am- 
bitious of high civil or military distinction, no longer 
find encouragement in the song of grateful adulation, 
or the speech that deals in lofty panegyric ? Shall all 
the agreeable courtesies of society be forever relin- 
quished, because they are denounced as the offspring 
of flattery? 

It is not, then, sir, too much to assume, that flattery 
is frequently found not a little beneficial in its opera- 
tion. It may, it is true, be employed for wicked pur- 
poses; but that, sir, may be affirmed of almost every 



THE SLANDERER AND THE FLATTERER. 147 

thing. We do not surely require to be reminded, that 
the abuse of a thing is not to be taken as an argument 
against the legitimate use of it. That which, rightly 
used, is known to be a wholesome food or an efficacious 
remedy, is often equally well known to be, in rash or 
ignorant hands, a most deadly poison. 

The gentleman dwells upon the seductive arts of 
flattery, the engaging manner which she assumes, in 
order to accomplish her purposes. Well, in that he 
is certainly right. She is doubtless fair in form, and 
in possession of many attractive graces. But is not 
this an odd sort of objection ? Without these arts and 
graces, would she be flattery at all ? If his objection, 
therefore, be resolved into its ultimate essence, it will 
be, that he objects to flattery, because it is flattery. 
So do we all ; but what has that to do with the imme- 
diate question before us ? 

But his design evidently is to gain something, in this 
argument, by lingering upon the false, though fair, fea- 
tures of flattery, as though slander were a creature of 
honest countenance, and manly bearing, and altogether 
above petty deceptions. But what, sir, is the reality 
of the case ? Does the gentleman require again to be 
informed, that slander is quite as plausible as flattery? 

When Iago proceeds to awaken the cruel suspicions 
of Othello, what guise does he assume but that of 
friendship ? The odious mask of friendship, so well pre- 
served in the character of Iago, is scarcely less revolting 
to our better feelings, than the foul aspersions which he 
breathes, or insinuates against the guiltless Desdemona. 
This scene, in the great Dramatist, is realized every 
day in the actual drama of life, " What God hath 



148 DEBATES IN FULL. 

joined together, let no man put asunder," is the sol- 
emn injunction of Holy Writ ; but here is a creature, 
in form, a man, in fact, a demon, who, regardless alike 
of the laws of earth, and the prohibitions of Heaven, 
takes the guise of disinterested friendship, and, under 
that guise, works, by the excitation of rage and jeal- 
ousy, the utter dissolution of the marriage bond, and 
the utter destruction of helpless innocence. 

Yet, the gentleman talks about the fair, but decep- 
tive forms of flattery. What form, sir, more fair, or 
more deceptive, can the flatterer assume, than that of 
the viperous Iago, when he worked upon the suspicions 
of the jealous Moor ? 

But, sir, I see the slanderer in other scenes. Here 
is a youth, high in promise, elate in spirits, breathing 
all the fullness and freshness of early hope. He is 
honest, active, intelligent, industrious, competent every 
way. He has ventured to establish a business of his 
own. He has labored long and assiduously, for one so 
young, to deserve the confidence of his fellow-men. 
This only he needs to secure success in his new under- 
taking. But he has competitors. These, if only the 
rivalry were generous, might serve rather to energize 
than to enfeeble his efforts. 

But there is one who is determined to defeat him. 
All at once, in a quarter vital to his prosperity, some 
adverse influence begins to operate. What can it be, 
that thus secretly affects his credit ? What oversight 
in trade, what imprudence in expenditure, what ap- 
pearance of extravagance, has been discovered, or im- 
agined ? Why, why are the former facilities so sud- 
denly, so absolutely, cut off? These questions start 



THE SLANDERER AND THE FLATTERER. 149 

up in the doubting, disappointed soul. They harass 
by day ; they make sleepless his night ; they wound 
his pride; they crush ambition; they generate all 
gloomy imaginings; and when, perchance, the hour 
of reparation is forever past, all at once he learns, that 
what eluded his search, though it ruined his business, 
was nothing more nor less than the poisonous breath 
of the secret slanderer. 

In this latter case, as in the former, sir, the slanderer 
is supposed to operate successfully, only because of 
an ingenious mask. He would guard a friend against 
the snares of an unworthy debtor ; he had no secret 
grudge, or evil motive of any kind ; not he. It was 
pure, disinterested friendship. This was the pretense, 
the smooth outside, which the treacherous transaction 
was made to assume. 

JSTow, sir, since this matter of appearances has been 
so prominently urged, I insist upon your comparing 
these disguises of slander with those attributed to the 
flatterer. Are those of the former less ingenious, less 
imposing, less effective any way, than those of the 
latter? I leave your own judgment, your own con- 
science, to answer. 

I might, Mr. President, proceed to give other illus- 
trations of this point ; but I feel it to be unnecessary. 
I am satisfied that you will, and must, agree with me 
in the conclusion, that whatever covering "they may 
put on, whatever air they may assume, whatever lan- 
guage they may adopt, these two odious characters 
differ from each other most widely, in this, that the 
slanderer far outstrips the flatterer in the production 
of deep and lasting detriment. 



150 DEBATES IN FULL. 



FOURTH SPEAKER. 



Mr. President^ — The considerations offered by the 
last speaker certainly seem somewhat forcible. Their 
force is, however, I think, mainly apparent. It grows 
rather out of a certain ingenuity of statement, than out 
of any real power in the argumentation itself. 

Does not all that he has urged, amount just to this ? 
There is nothing good in slander ; there is something 
good in flattery ; ergo, slander is worse than flattery. 

This short syllogism comprehends the burden of his 
speech ; on this he seems fully to rely, as the lawyers 
say, for a verdict in his favor. The syllogism, too, 
looks like a valid one. It has, indeed, somewhat the 
air of that flattery which he here advocates. Yet, sir, 
its validity, after all, is merely apparent, as I hope to 
show you. 

In all reasoning, direct or indirect, in order to ren- 
der a conclusion satisfactory, there must be no uncer- 
tainty about the premises. But are the premises, in 
the present instance, perfectly clear and satisfactory ? 

It has already been shown by a previous speaker, 
that slander and flattery both equally and essentially 
originate in the spirit of deception. To call things by 
their right names, they are only different phases of 
lying. Every slander is a lie, — every flattery is a lie. 
This may seem strange language in this place ; it may 
sound harsh, and even coarse, to ears polite. But, sir, 
is it not true ? 

Assuming this to be true, — for I see not how it can 
be otherwise considered, — how, I ask, can it be shown, 



THE SLANDERER AND THE FLATTERER. 151 

that falsehood, when it appears in the shape of slander, 
has no good in it, but the moment it takes the guise of 
flattery, it has some good in it ? Will it not be necessa- 
ry, in order to give validity to the gentleman's argu- 
ment, to prove, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that 
good is sometimes found in lying? And, for that 
purpose, will it not further be necessary to demonstrate, 
and that in the very face of Holy Scripture, that "a 
lying tongue " is not one of the six things hated of the 
Lord ?* For, surely, sir, Grod cannot hate good in any 
form. 

The fact is, Mr. President, flattery is falsehood, and 
slander is falsehood, and there is no good in either. 
Take, therefore, out of the gentleman's syllogism the 
words slander and flattery, and insert in each place the 
word lying, which is the proper equivalent, and its fal- 
lacy will immediately appear. It will then stand thus : 
There is no good in lying ; but there is some good in 
lying ; ergo, lying is worse than lying ! 

Surely, sir, the gentleman does not hope to convince 
by reasoning like this. He must, on the contrary, 
consent to bring the two characters, named in the ques- 
tion, into fair comparison. They are both deceivers, 
both entitled to high distinction for works of wicked- 
ness. Yet they differ widely in their power, and ten- 
dency to evil. Let us, therefore, adhere to the real 
point in dispute. That point is simply — which of these 
two confessedly pernicious characters, is the more per- 
nicious ? 

JSTow, I maintain, that the arts, or means employed 
by the flatterer, enable him to do greater mischief, and 

* Proverbs, ch. vi., ver. 16, 11, 18. 



152 DEBATES IN" FULL. 

that, in general, he does do greater mischief, than the 
slanderer ever can do by any possibility whatever. 
The world is full of the memorials of flattery's ruinous 
agency. 
When Milton sang 

"Of man's first disobedience, and the fruit 
Of that forbidden tree, whose mortal taste 
Brought death into the world, and all our woe," 

he sang of the terrible consequences of flattery. Alas ! 
poor Eve, though in thy disobedience we recognize the 
source of all human calamity, we cannot but sympa- 
thize with thee, when wavering under the tempting 
tongue of the flatterer. Who, who might have with- 
stood that subtle and seductive strain ? Even as it 
appears in the fancy of the poet, there is a charm about 
it that makes us lend a willing ear, and even forget for a 
moment, that we are listening to the voice of the 
Devil: 

" Fairest resemblance of thy Maker fair ! 

Thee all things living gaze on, all things thine 

By gift, and thy celestial beauty adore 

With ravishment beheld ! there best beheld 

Where universally admired; but here 

In this inclosure wild, these beasts among, 

Beholders rude, and shallow to discern 

Half what in thee is fair, one man except, 

Who sees thee ? (and what is one ?) who should'st be seers 

A Goddess among Gods, adored and served 

By angels numberless, thy daily train." 

" So glozed* the Tempter," adds the inimitable poet. 

* Gloze is formed from gloss, just as glaze is formed from glass. 
Gloss, in Greek yhtiooa, the tongue, is used to signify a note, com- 



THE SLANDERER AND THE FLATTERER. 153 

" So glozed the Tempter !" What word, in all the lan- 
guages of earth, could so well describe this diabolical 
transaction ? " So glozed the Tempter 1" It was by 
glozing, that is, by nattering with the tongue, that the 
foul fiend contrived, in the person of Eve, to achieve 
the ruin of the race. How many, many thousands of 
her fair descendants have since been ruined by the 
same hellish agency, what tribunal, save that of the 
final judgment, can ever, ever disclose ? 

The cup of Circe and the song of the Sirens, in the 
old mythology, both admirably symbolize the com- 
bined fairness and foulness of flattery. It is delightful 
to the taste, but brutalizing to the taster ; it is enchant- 
ment to the ear, but death to the hearer. Virtue often 
derives vigor from the assaults of slander, but where 
is the vigilance which flattery may not surprise, or 
where is the firmness which flattery may not under- 
mine ? How many kings, statesmen, heroes and ce- 
lebrities of every name, whom neither the might of 
armies, nor the money of a Croesus could ever subdue, 
or purchase, have yielded themselves willing captives 
to the power of a delusive tongue ? How many com- 
munities, whom no threat of tyranny, no promise of 
bounty, could, for one instant, induce to tolerate the 
exercise of despotic rule, have, by the influence of 
cajoling demagogues, been subjected to a despotism 
more odious than that of Dionysius, more infamous 
than that of the Caesars ? 

merit, or explanation; thence, also, a specious, or artful interpretation, 
and, by easy transition, brightness, or superficial lustre. Gloze, 
therefore, is literally to tongue over anything, that is, to invest it 
with a smooth and fair outside ; to delude by flattery. 

7* 



154 



DEBATES IN FULL. 



Sir, a life of virtue is the death of slander. He that 
is upright in principle, and circumspect in walk and 
conversation, is generally beyond the reach of per- 
manent injury from the touch of slander. But what 
discourages and defeats the purposes of slander, often 
invites the stealthy approach of flattery. 

The slanderer stands at a distance, and endeavors 
to bring ruin upon us from abroad. The policy of 
flattery is to make us work out our own destruction. 
It deals in traps, pitfalls, and snares of every descrip- 
tion. It is a sort of moral chloroform, that steals 
away the senses, and disarms the soul. 

" Faithful are the wounds of a friend," says Solomon, 
" but the hisses of an enemy are deceitful ;" and, sir, 
compared with flattery, slander is a friend, — one that, 
at least, keeps us on our guard, making us watchful, 
however undesignedly, against whatever act, or indul- 
gence might justly expose us to the tongue of animad- 
version. 

But, sir, I will not longer trespass upon your pa- 
tience. The matter in dispute is too clear to need fur- 
ther explanation, and its decision will, I hope, serve 
to show, that you fully concur with me in the opinion, 
that whatever be the magnitude of the slanderer's guilt, 
that of the flatterer is greater still. 



FIFTH SPEAKER 



Mr. President, — I am little versed in metaphysical 
speculations. In truth, I have very little taste in that 
direction. You will not, therefore, expect me to lin- 
ger long, either on the lines of essential distinction, if 



THE SLANDERER AND THE FLATTERER. 155 

any there be, between slander and flattery, or upon the 
proofs of their original and generic identity, supposing 
that view of the case to be the true one. 

"Well," exclaims some one, "but what disposition 
will you make of the argument founded upon the con- 
sideration, that they are both essentially deceivers. Are 
they not alike in guilt, as they are alike in nature ? 
Will it not be indispensable to go somewhat into what 
you call ' metaphysical speculation,' in order to satisfy 
the demands of the discussion ?" 

To all this I answer, — suppose I accept, as I really 
do, the doctrine that the slanderer and the flatterer 
both spring from the same parents, that is, both have 
their origin in a lying spirit. What will that prove ? 
It is only by operating upon the principle, that he that 
offendeth in one point, is guilty of the ivhole, a decla- 
ration that respects the perfect law of God, and which 
makes all sin equally an infringement of the Divine 
commandments, that you can derive anything like an 
argument from the assumed identity of slander and 
flattery. 

Still, let us apply that standard. What is the re- 
sult? Why, since every sin is, according to the hy- 
pothesis, equal to every other sin, it follows, that the 
inherent guilt of these two things is precisely equal. 
But granting them to be equal, in this respect, what do 
you gain by the disclosure? The question is not, 
which is the more wicked character by nature, but which, 
by the exercise of that wickedness, produces the greater 
mischief. 

Well, now it does seem to me, that a lie that is 
merely complimentary, cannot be so deleterious as one 



156 



DEBATES IN FULL. 



that is abusive and malicious. There are many people 
who, without the least evil intent, nay, with the best 
intentions possible, are always seeking to say kind 
things, though they may be somewhat exaggerated. 
They are, indeed, lavish sometimes in the use of com- 
plimentary terms. But we never, on that account, think 
of dealing harshly with them. We regard the inten- 
tion, and look with indulgence, if not with approbation, 
upon the motive that governs their conduct. 

But how is it, in the case of him who puts forth the 
language of calumny? What mitigation comes, or 
can come, from considering his motive ? What kindly 
impulse, what benevolent end, throws, or ever can 
throw, over his vicious career the mantle of all-bearing, 
all-believing, all-hoping Charity? We can have no 
conception of slight slander, or inoffensive defamation. 
It would be a solecism in terms, to speak of such a 
thing. Slander is never slight, never inoffensive, be- 
cause were it so, it would no longer be slander. The 
poison which it discharges, is always of the most fatal 
character. 

How differently do slander and flattery appear in 
the eyes of the Legislator ! We often hear of suits and 
trials for slander ; but who has ever heard of suits and 
trials for flattery ? There is an argument in this fact. 
Were flattery equally deleterious with slander, it cer- 
tainly would have been ranked among penal offenses 
in the Statute Book. Instead of that, it takes ground 
with those numerous vices which, being considered too 
slight, or too subtle to be reached by the arm of the Leg- 
islator, are necessarily handed over to the pen of the 
Satirist, that is, to the potent voice of public Opinion. 



THE SLANDERER AND THE FLATTERER. 157 

The law, in this particular, no doubt, as in all others, 
is governed somewhat by the quo animo, the secret 
purpose, the motive. It compares the hearts of these 
two characters, as well as the outward workings and 
consequences of their action. On this ground, undoubt- 
edly, in great measure, it punishes the one with ex- 
emplary damages, while it dismisses the other, not as 
altogether guiltless, but as properly belonging to a 
more indulgent tribunal. 

This interior view of the slanderer's character, Mr. 
President, may, perhaps, help more than anything else 
to bring us to a just decision of the point in dispute. 

Take a faint picture of the slanderer's head and heart, 
— the secret chambers of his soul, when he proceeds to 
operate in his appropriate sphere. See Memory, Eea- 
son, Judgment, Imagination, Hope, Fear, Envy, Malice, 
Hatred, Pride, Yanity, Selfishness, all the powers and 
passions assembled in secret conclave against virtue 
and innocence. See Memory furnishing facts and cir- 
cumstances ; see Eeason and Judgment, the distinguish- 
ing attributes of our common humanity, forced into 
the debasing office of constructing false and sophist- 
ical arguments ; see Imagination busily engaged in 
moulding the vilest fancies into the forms of reality ; 
see Hope, even Hope, that should ever be the sweet 
solace of misery and misfortune, smiling complacently 
and promising .success to the foulest conspiracy ; see 
Fear whispering caution, Envy exulting in the prospec- 
tive calamity of a neighbor, Malice joining hand with 
Hatred to infuse the bitter poison of antipathy ; while 
Pride, Yanity, and Selfishness, creatures one in spirit, 
and different only in their modes of manifestation, 



158 DEBATES IN FULL. 

combine their energies for the encouragement and 
consummation of the diabolical enterprise. 

But, sir, I would not seek further to depict this 
" Stygian Council," — this perfect Pandemonium of the 
soul. But what, what, I ask, must be the measure of 
that iniquity, that can combine for the execution of 
its purposes, forces, moral and intellectual, so opposite 
and incongruous as these ? 

One more thought, Mr. President, and I will bring 
my observations to a close. That thought is, that a 
very reliable argument in favor of the side which I 
here advocate, might be drawn from the testimony of 
the wise and good of all ages and countries. 

I have not the testimony at hand, of course ; and, 
if I had, it would be altogether too voluminous to 
offer in detail, as you know. But I venture to affirm, 
that could this be done, their views would confirm mine, 
with scarcely a dissentient voice. One example only 
I can now recall from among the ancients ; but that in- 
dicates, I doubt not, the spirit that pervades them all. 
Diogenes, the famous old Cynic, being asked, on a cer- 
tain occasion, of which beast the bite was the most 
dangerous, immediately answered, " If you mean wild 
beasts, it is the slanderer's ; if tame, the flatterer's !" 

In this answer of Diogenes, I recognize the fair, un- 
biassed judgment of mankind. With him, the slan- 
derer instantly takes the features, traits, characteristics, 
or what not, that belong peculiarly to the wild, fero- 
cious beast of prey, compared with which, the flat- 
terer is a creature tame, gentle, and harmless. 

Do not, sir, misunderstand me. I am not advocating 
the claims of flattery to moral purity ; for it has none. 



THE SLANDERER AND THE FLATTERER. 159 

On the contrary, I see clearly and regret deeply its 
sad delinquency. But, if asked whether it exceeded, 
in my opinion, the measure of wrong-doing that be- 
longs to slander, I could, with a clear conscience, and 
with a firm voice, adopt for answer the words of the 
immortal Shakspeare : 

" No ; 'tis slander, 
Whose edge is sharper than the sword, whose tongue 
Outvenoms all the worms of Nile ; whose breath 
Rides on the posting winds, and doth belie 
All corners of the world : kings, queens, and states, 
Maids, matrons, nay, the secrets of the grave, 
This viperous slander enters." 



SIXTH SPEAKER. 

Mr. President, — The labor of our opponents, in this 
debate, has thus far been directed, it would seem, to 
the purpose of giving to flattery the aspect of a very 
venial offense. This has been attempted in two ways ; 
first, by dwelling upon the deformities of slander, and 
so filling the mind with a sense of its enormity, as ef- 
fectually to exclude, for the time, the idea of equal 
wickedness in flattery ; secondly, by painting flattery 
in colors calculated to conceal, rather than display her 
real character : presenting her in the form of a maiden, 
fair, fascinating, full of smiles, compliments, and all 
sorts of winning ways, overflowing, moreover, with 
benevolence, and, therefore, prodigal to a fault in the 
language of praise. Nothing could be more fallacious 
than this mode of dealing with our question. 

No, sir ; flattery is far from being confined to slight 



160 DEBATES IN FULL. 

exaggeration, and innocent hyperbole, It is, in truth, 
a gigantic evil. It is interwoven with the whole frame- 
work of society, and encrusts it everywhere with the 
smooth shell of hypocrisy. Not only is the tongue en- 
listed in its service ; but all features of the face, all mo- 
tions of the body, are carefully trained to do its bid- 
ding. It is confined to no class ; it is restricted to no 
country ; it works always, and works stealthily ; and, 
if unrestrained, would soon make us see, in a sense dif- 
ferent from that intended by Shakspeare, that 

"All the world 's a stage, 
And all the men and women merely players." 

Now, sir, in this fact, in this universal presence of 
flattery, I find an argument. The power of the flat- 
terer for mischief, nay, sir, the necessary result of his 
action, is greater far than that of the slanderer, because 
he has a wider field of operation. The slanderer must 
work cautiously ; he must balance, with skill, the prob- 
abilities of the case ; he must, as the last speaker has 
observed, summon in council the faculties of the mind, 
before he can venture to act at all. He knows that 
detection will not only be fatal to his plot, but, also, 
fatal to him. 

But the flatterer, confident of success, because he is 
confident of a pleasant reception, and because, more- 
over, he has, generally, no apprehension of personal 
danger, proceeds to his task without delay or impedi- 
ment. If he succeed, his joy is complete ; if he fail, 
he has suffered nothing but slight repulse, — a look of 
pity, or a smile of contempt. 



THE SLANDERER AND THE FLATTERER. 161 

The necessity of caution and the dread of conse- 
quences, you see, sir, seriously impede, and greatly 
circumscribe the operations of slander. Still further 
are they limited by the comparative fewness of the 
objects, upon which it can be made to operate at all. 
If appearances be not decidedly against the party slan- 
dered, or the ear of the listener be not strongly predis- 
posed, the voice of the slanderer is heard usually with 
something of distrust. The semblance of truth must 
be carefully preserved in every particular; for the 
least improbability is sure 

" To cast 
Ominous conjecture on the whole success." 

Flattery, on the other hand, courses, unchecked, 
over the whole field of human existence. It clothes 
the maiden with imaginary charms, and satisfies her 
soul with empty professions ; it diverts the manly 
youth from sober pursuits, makes him impatient of 
salutary restraints, and absorbs his time in enervating 
pleasures ; it dims the vision, and weakens the arm 
of parental discipline ; it urges folly to claim the honor 
due only to wisdom ; it induces cowardice to be per- 
fectly content with the mere uniform of courage ; in 
short, it encourages all the vices and defects of the race, 
to hide their native deformity, even from themselves, 
under the forms and coverings peculiar to the virtues 
and perfections opposite to each respectively. 

If you ask for particular examples, they start up in 
every direction. Look at yonder rich man's table. 
Who is he, with servile look and mock delight, that 
sells his birth-right of independence for a mess of pot- 



162 DEBATES IN F.ULL. 

tage? It is the parasite, — a name that contains the 
best history of the man.* 

Who are these finely dressed, but anxious looking 
people, craving admission into the circles of the so- 
called aristocracy ? They are those mistaken children of 
fashion, in whom flattery has contrived to extinguish 
all proper self-respect, and implanted, in its stead, a 
vain desire to be considered the elite ; who, flattered by 
the condescensions of those whom they suppose to be 
above them, mistake sufferance for civility, and the 
form for the fact of high social standing. 

But who is this? He is all graciousness, — "all 
things to all men," not, however, that he "may by all 
means, save some," but that he may, by any means, in- 
veigle many. With what hearty grasp he seizes the 
hand of the sturdy smith ! How eagerly he inquires 
after his ikmily; how ready his joke, how loud his 
laugh! Was ever. man so social? Who is he? The 
politician, — the keen pursuer of place and power. He 
is now a candidate for some lucrative office, and these 
people, among whom he is so freely dispensing bows, 
smiles and compliments, are the voters. What are his 
claims to preferment ? His skill in the use of flattery. 

What palace is this ? It is the abode of the courtier 
—the professional flatterer. Let us enter. Who are 
these, with eager look and anxious brow, that await his 
coming in the spacious hall ? It is the crowd of ex- 
pectants, whom his reputed kindness and affluence have 

* Parasite, (from the Greek napd, near, or beside, and gltoc, food) 
means, literally, one who takes food with another ; thence it came 
to be applied to one who assents to, fawns upon, or servilely flatters 
another for the sake of food, or any other personal advantage. 



THE SLANDERER AND THE FLATTERER. 163 

attracted to Tais door. How graciously, at length, he 
enters the apartment ! His smile, his nod, his whole 
demeanor, how inspiring to the heart of needy, hoping 
humanity ! But heavy is the disappointment destined 
to succeed. There is no truth in him. It is the habit 
of his life, — the irresistible second nature that has fasten- 
ed upon him, alternately to create and to destroy the 
hopes of his fellow men. 

But yonder comes the conquering hero, heralded by 
the trumpet of fame, — that ingenious mouth-piece of 
flattery. How sweet to him is the sound of that trum- 
pet ! It drowns the groan of the dying, the wail of 
the widow, the maiden's lament and the orphan's cry. 
It stirs ambition, it fires the soul, and hides in romantic 
interest the horrors of the battle field. It tells of power, 
it tells of glory, not only to the present, but to future 
generations. How sweet is the sound of that trumpet ! 
Alas ! too often sweet, only because it feeds an insatiate 
and remorseless vanity. 

But, Mr. President, I will not trouble you with fur- 
ther instances. Whichever way I look, I see the 
workings, or the sad results of the workings, of flattery ; 
and whichever way I survey her movements, she ap- 
pears as a two-edged sword, cutting keenly in both di- 
rections — the flatterer and the flattered. He that gives 
and he that takes this dangerous draught, are often 
equally and hopelessly wounded. 

Much, much may we dread the tooth of Slander, 
but is not the tongue of Flattery still more dreadful ? 



164: DEBATES IN FULL. 

SECOND DEBATE. 

WHICH IS PREFERABLE, CITY OR COUNTRY LIFE? 



FIRST SPEAKER. 

Mr. President, — The question which we are now 
about to discuss, — " Which is preferable, city or country 
UfeV — though apparently simple, is far from being 
devoid of difficulties. I have no hesitation, however, 
in declaring my preference for the country ; though I 
deeply regret, that the limits to which I am here con- 
fined, utterly forbid any attempt to assign all, or any 
considerable part of my reasons for that preference. 
I must, indeed, content myself, for the present, with 
the statement of a single argument. It will be found, 
I hope, so impressive, because so truthful, that convic- 
tion must follow in its train. 

I refer here to the argument derived from what I 
shall venture to call the moral influence of rural scenes. 
The country, sir, is the natural abode of man. There 
he is in constant communion with nature. There, un- 
distracted by the tumults of trade, unenslaved by the 
tyranny of fashion, unpolluted by the vices of a 
promiscuous populace, he walks and works from 
day to day, amid mountains and valleys, meadows 
green, and cultivated fields, and all else that can 
inspire gratitude and devotion to the great Giver of 
all good. 



TOWN AND COUNTKY. 165 

There man has frequent opportunities, nay, invita- 
tions, so to speak, to look into his own heart, — to com- 
mune with his own spirit, — to develop and strengthen 
his native powers; in short, to train and discipline 
his whole physical, "moral, and intellectual nature. 
If you would allow a man, unfettered, to become 
what he is capable of becoming, you must not 
throw him into the turmoil and bustle of towns and 
cities. 

There he will, perchance, become what is called a 
"business man;" there he may become a millionare; 
there he may circulate freely in the gay assemblies of 
fashion ; but there he cannot easily realize the true 
dignity of manhood. There is something in the very 
quiet and solitude of the country, which wonderfully 
elicits thought, develops character, and makes the man. 
Well has the poet said : — 



" "Where is the wise, or the learned, or the good that sought not 

solitude for thinking, 
And from seclusion's secret vale brought forth his precious fruits ? 
Forests of Aricia, your deep shade mellowed Numa's wisdom ; 
Peaceful gardens of Vaucluse, ye nourished Petrarch's love ; 
Solitude made a Cincinnatus, ripening the hero and the patriot; 
And taught De Stael self-knowledge, even in the damp Bastile ; 
It fostered the piety of Jerome, matured the labors of Augustine ; 
And gave imperial Charles religion for ambition ; 
That which Scipio praised, that which Alfred practiced, 
"Which fired Demosthenes to eloquence, and fed the mind of Milton, 
"Which quickened zeal, nurtured genius, found out the secret things 

of science, 
Helped repentance, shamed folly, and comforted the good with 

peace, 
By all men just and wise, by all things pure and perfect, 
How truly, Solitude, art thou the fostering nurse of greatness 1" 



166 DEBATES IN FULL. 



SECOND SPEAKER. 

Mr. President, — The speech just delivered, (I mean 
no discourtesy,) is certainly not without merit, if con- 
sidered merely as a picture of fancy. But, sir, fancy is 
not fact ; and is, therefore, a very unfit material out 
of which to construct an argument. He says, that the 
dweller in the country is "in constant communion 
with nature" : discerning, as it seems to me, no differ- 
ence between contact and communion. 

Country people are, indeed, in perpetual contact 
with those natural objects, which often awaken thought 
and foster devotion ; but to infer from this, that they 
are actually always in sweet and sober communion with 
the beauties and sublimities of the scenery, amid which 
they dwell, is fanciful in the highest degree. 

In reflecting upon rural life, we are very apt to fix 
our thoughts exclusively on grand and imposing fea- 
tures in nature, — on what is fair and beautiful, and 
fitted to excite pleasurable emotions, and to shut our 
eyes against its sterner and more repulsive aspects. 
Our imagination draws lively landscapes, and peoples 
them with souls of almost superhuman purity and in- 
nocence. It withdraws from the scene the digging 
and the delving, the bogs, the marshes, and all the 
nameless annoyances and hardships that constitute 
the stern realities of country life. 

It calls into beings shepherds and shepherdesses, 
nay, rustics of every name and occupation, all gentle, 
all lovely, all kind, all uncontaminated by contact 
with vicious associations, and breathing a perfectly 



TOWN AND COUNTRY. 167 

pure and healthy moral atmosphere. It, moreover, 
endows these people with peculiar tendencies to con- 
templation, makes them specially susceptible to the 
impressions of grand and noble scenes, and almost al- 
together free from the common propensities and way- 
wardness of humanity. 

Mr. President, such views of country life may befit 
those who supply the world with what is called, Pas- 
toral Poetry ; they may do to beguile a leisure hour, 
or feed a morbid imagination ; but depend upon it, 
they have no real existence. Let any man mingle 
freely with country people ; let him examine their 
habits, manners, their common, every- day life and 
conversation ; and he will not be long in discovering, 
that the argument of the gentleman is wholly falla- 
cious. 

Allowing what you will for the influence of sublime 
and beautiful objects on the heart, it must be recol- 
lected that familiarity itself begets indifference, and 
that men soon come to walk among the Alps as among 
common hills, to sail over ocean billows as over the 
ripples of a quiet lake, and in short, to look, with com- 
parative unconcern, upon things familiar, though they 
be the most thrilling and wonderful works of Creation. 

The argument, therefore, which the gentleman has 
selected, with such apparent confidence in its force, 
is not, in my judgment, a conclusive one. It shows, 
it is true, that the country offers many features well 
fitted to awaken emotion and improve the heart ; but 
it does not prove that these objects always produce 
that effect. I may, therefore, conclude by informing 
him, that his argument is just as true when applied 



168 DEBATES IN FULL. 

to the city. The city, also, has many objects admirably 
adapted to arouse our better nature, and promote our 
spiritual well-being ; but, alas, they are seldom, ay, 
very seldom, duly regarded. 

THIRD SPEAKER. 

Mr. President, — Instead of stopping to examine and 
refute what seems objectionable in the views expressed 
by the last speaker, I propose to introduce some two, or 
three new arguments, or considerations in favor of ru- 
ral life. It will hardly be denied, that contact with vice 
has a corrupting influence, even by those who deny 
that contact with country scenes and objects, has no 
necessary improving power; for, "Evil communica- 
tions," says an inspired writer, " corrupt good manners ;" 
and this I hold to be true, whether in the city, or the 
country. 

The only question is, which yields the greater amount 
of evil. Now, will any one deny this bad distinction 
to the city ? And, if this be not denied, manifestly the 
country, on the score of morals, is the better, because 
the safer place. 

But, again, sir, the country has a most decided ad- 
vantage over the city, as a place for intellectuul culture. 

It gives freedom from tumult, noise, and distracting 
excitements. It guaranties exemption from a thousand 
intrusions and interruptions, inseparable from city life ; 
favors abstraction and concentration of the mental pow- 
ers, and so secures to the student the best results of in- 
tellectual labor. 

In proof of this, which is so clear in theory, I might 



\ 



TOWN AND COUNTRY. 169 



cite the testimony of experience — the experience of 
poets, orators, writers, and thinkers of every name and 
grade, and of almost every age and clime. But why 
dwell on a point so evident ? 

Again, the country favors not only mental and mor- 
al culture, but is eminently adapted to the development 
of the physical constitution. Every one knows, that city 
life, for the most part, is a thing altogether artificial. 
It cramps the feet with tight shoes, it compresses the 
waist with tight dresses ; it invites and fosters colds, 
coughs, and consumptions, through the agency of thin 
stockings, light clothing, late hours, and many other 
similar requirements of fashion, which time would fail 
me to specify. 

ISTor is this all. The resident of the city not always 
enjoys the fresh products of the country, though he 
be ever so willing to pay for them. He must often be 
content with stale butter, stale milk, stale everything ; 
[while the happy farmer partakes of all these things in 
~~their freshness and purity.7 May we not, sir, in view 
of these and other kindred advantages connected with 
a residence in the country, may we not ask your decis- 
ion in our favor ? 

FOURTH SPEAKER. 

Mr. President, — From the observations of the gentle- 
man who has just taken his seat, one might, without an 
appeal to facts, naturally infer, that all good is confined 
to the country, and all evil centered in the city. In the 
life of a citizen, he finds a sort of Siberian destitution ; 
so that whether he walks, or talks, or studies, or eats, 

8 



170 DEBATES IN FULL. 

or drinks, or exercises, he is equally the victim of ty- 
rannical custom. 

Well, sir, to this doleful catalogue of imaginary ills, 
which must surely be regarded as the offspring of a 
distempered fancy, I can only append that old, familiar 
caption of certain newspaper paragraphs, — " Important, 
if true" 

Why, sir, who ever heard, till this hour, that study 
was a thing to be done to the best advantage only " out 
in the country ?" There only, it seems, we can get clear 
of noise and nuisance enough to enable us to think ; 
as if people of studious habits, living in the city, were 
obliged by some unrelenting fatality to choose for a 
study just that spot in a town, where most " do con- 
gregate " carts, wagons, stages, and wheel-barrows, and 
where the din and clatter of commercial transactions 
are the most unceasing, and the most annoying; or, as 
if all parts of a city, and at all times of the day, were 
equally and hopelessly given up to clamor, uproar, and 
confusion. 

Talk about opportunities for study? Where can 
they be better, where can they be as good as in the city ? 
Here are capital schools, capital teachers, capital appar- 
atus, capital libraries, capital courses of lectures, capi- 
tal chances for literary conversation; in fact, capital 
chances for every thing that can enlarge, store, train, 
and liberalize the mind. 

If we adopt the oft-reiterated sentiment, that 

" The proper study of mankind is man." 

and, for the prosecution of this study, seek the society 
of shade, and stream, and forest, and valley, where 



TOWN" AND COUNTRY. 171 

men are found few in numbers, and free from the ex- 
citements and conflicts, the competitions and vicissi- 
tudes that force out motive, and so determine the char- 
acter of actions, we shall soon discover that our means 
of improvement, are sadly deficient. The city, sir, 
whatever our first impressions might suggest, is, with- 
out doubt, the best school for the study of the human 
heart ; so that, if, indeed, " the proper study of mankind 
is man," the proper place for that study is the crowded 
city. "Glorious, indeed," says Longfellow, "is the 
world of God around us, but more glorious the world 
of God iviihin us !" That " world of God within us," 
sir, which is destined to survive "the world of God 
around us," and which, for that reason, is the more de- 
serving of our careful regard, is there best explored, 
where men, in masses, meet, jostle, rival and mutually 
stimulate one another. 

But the gentleman dreads the vicious associations of 
the city. If that argument had any strength, it ought 
to drive him quite out of the world ; for vicious peo- 
ple are, by no means, peculiar to cities. It ought, at 
least, to render him a hermit, — to force him into the 
most absolute asceticism ; for nothing can be more ob- 
vious than, that vicious people are not the peculiar her- 
itage and burden of cities. 

Evil thrives, with more or less vigor and virulence, 
everywhere. We can not run entirely away from it, 
though we need not, and should not run heedlessly or 
designedly into it. Our positive duty is to oppose it, 
whether in ourselves or in others. " Eesist the devil," 
says the apostle James, " and he will flee from you." 



172 DEBATES IN FULL. 

Surely, Sir, this Scriptural instruction differs toto cceh 
from that which counsels us not to resist, but to run. 

The truth is, Mr. President, there is often a positive 
advantage in being near to the wicked and the degraded, 
provided we have the heart to seek to do them good. 
Christ himself affords, by his practice in this regard, as 
in all others, the best possible example. He was found 
among the wicked; the outcast, the wretched : saying 
in answer tc? the question, " Why eateth your master 
with publicans and sinners ?" " They that be whole 
need not a physician, but they that are sick." By fol- 
lowing this divine example, sir, we may derive the 
highest benefit to ourselves, while we are seeking to 
alleviate the woes of others. 

The spirit of true Christianity is no anchoretic spirit. 
It goes out among men, because evil is among men, 
and seeks, like its blessed Founder, "to save that which 
is lost." That wicked men, in numbers, dwell in cities, 
is therefore no argument to induce good men to flee to 
the country. It is rather a reason to make them court 
that trial of virtue, by which they may become at once 
the teachers and the taught in the ways and the works 
of Cod. 



FIFTH SPEAKER. 

Mr. President, — If I wished to give a distinct notion 
of the difference in signification, between the words 
ingenious and ingenuous, I think I might safely say, 
that, in this discussion, thus far the arguments for 
the country have been ingenuous^ while the answers to 
them have been ingenious. 



TOWN AND COUNTRY. 173 

The country, says the first speaker, in substance, 
abounds in scenes and objects fitted to awaken admi- 
ration, and turn the thoughts of men toward their 
Creator. It differs from the city, in being the natural, 
instead of the artificial dwelling-place of man, and is, 
therefore, better adapted to the development of his 
mental and moral character. 

Now, this is a plain and ingenuous statement of 
truth ; powerful, indeed, but only powerful, because it 
is true. But how is it answered ? " Oh," says the next 
speaker, " that's all fancy I Men soon become indiffer- 
ent to the impressions of external grandeur. These 
things may be fitted to excite sublime sentiments and 
holy affections, but they seldom do ; for men are apt 
to pass them by unheeded." 

Then the whole argument is dismissed with a fine 
flourish of words about people walking among the 
Alps, as they would among common hills, and riding 
on the waves of the ocean as thoughtlessly as they 
would on the gently ruffled surface of a tranquil lake. 
In all this, the real point, on which the argument was 
obviously meant to turn, viz. : the comparative influence 
of city and country scenes and objects on man's moral 
nature, is quite overlooked. Now, sir, this may be 
considered ingenious, but it is far from being ingenuous. 

Again ; it was argued that the quiet and seclusion 
of rural life, afforded better opportunities for study and 
reflection than can be realized in the city ; where there 
must be much of bustle and uproar, — the necessary 
concomitants of trade and commerce. In reply to 
this, we are rather tauntingly told, that people in the 
city, who are inclined to study, do not, for that pur- 



174 DEBATES IN FULL. 

pose, seek those parts of the town most beset with the 
noise of carts, and the clamor of commerce. 

And, as if to draw the mind entirely away from the 
point in debate, that is, from a simple comparison of 
advantages, where both places are admitted to have, at 
least, some claims to the thing in dispute, we are boast- 
fully reminded, that in cities there are capital schools, 
capital lectures, and capital everything ! Surely, sir, 
this is somewhat ingenious in the way of logic ; but is 
it candid? Is it ingenuous? 

It was further argued, that the country is compara- 
tively free from the vicious associations that are always 
collected in large cities ; and forthwith a gentleman 
tells us that evil exists everywhere, and then quotes 
Scripture to show what nobody denies, namely, that we 
must "resist the devil." This is another specimen of 
logical ingenuity ; but it wants the very life and soul 
of logic, that is, the open and ingenuous spirit, that be- 
fits the investigation of truth. 

Such, sir, is the reasoning, which has here been 
employed, in the attempt to invalidate the claims of 
the country to superior regard, as a place of residence. 
Yain attempt ! " God made the country," some one 
has well observed, "but man made the city;" and 
there is here, as in all things else, the same measureless 
distance between the works of divinity and the works 
of humanity. 

The city, sir, is a contrivance of trade, — trade that 
fosters " the love of money, which is the root of all 
evil," — trade, that enslaves all the powers of the mind, 
and lashes them into the degrading service of Mam- 
mon, — trade, that tempts men to trickery and false- 



TOWN AND COUNTKY. 175 

hood, — trade, that makes them hasten to be rich, and 
so " pierce themselves through with many sorrows." 

The city, sir, is the convenience and theatre of 
fashion, — fashion that engenders fops and fools who 
delight in simulation and ^simulation ; anxiously 
laboring to seem to be what they are not, and not to be 
what they are, — fashion, that forms and fosters hollow 
and deceitful friendships and alliances, makes happi- 
ness dependent upon the cut of a coat, the shape of a 
hat, the fit of a boot, or the length of a moustache, and 
resolves all gentility into a slavish conformity with 
modes of dress and address, often absurd and ridicu- 
lous, and rarely convenient to nature. 

The city is the nursery of social vice ; — that vice, I 
mean, that can thrive only in the midst of multitudes ; 
that shelters itself under the concealments of trade, and 
fashion, and politics, and whatever else may yield a 
fair outside, and so saps, unseen, the very foundations 
of virtue. 

"Why is it, sir, that people worn out, or disgusted 
with the toil and turmoil of trade, or with the empty 
and wearisome round of fashionable dissipation, or 
with the sorrowful vicissitudes of political ambition, 
fly away to the enchanting embrace of rural life, and 
seek in nature's path what was vainly, though eagerly, 
pursued amid the artificial arrangements and com an- 
tional restraints of city life? It is because the coun- 
try, being agreeable to nature, furnishes just those 
means and modes of enjoyment, which are the most 
effective and permanent, because they are the most 
reliable. 

There healthful labor brings its natural reward, — 



176 DEBATES IN" FULL. 

" a sound mind in a sound bodyP There the eye is 
gratified with scenes of beauty and sublimity ; there 
the ear is delighted with the song of birds and all 
the melody of nature ; and there, if we will 7 we may, 
in truth, — 

" Look through nature up to Nature's God V* 



SIXTH SPEAKER. 

Mr. President, — I have no disposition to imitate the 
example of the last speaker, in complaining of the 
course taken by others in the debate ; but I cannot 
resist the conviction, that the real point in dispute has 
not yet been fully brought out and discussed. I do 
not flatter myself, that I shall be able to do it, as it 
ought to be done. Yet, something in this way, I shall 
attempt. 

The statement of the case, seems to be this. Two 
individuals, early in life, equal in health, fortune, and 
in social position, propose to themselves the question : 
1 ' Which is preferable, city or country life ?" It is not 
which would be preferable, supposing a man to be 
eager after wealth, or fashion, or some other specific 
object, which cities alone can confidently promise, be- 
cause of the number and variety of the people in 
them 5 neither is it, which would be preferable, sup- 
posing a man to be in quest of health, or disgusted 
with the tedious and trifling ways of fashion, or worn 
out with the cares of business, or dejected and dis- 
heartened by the disappointments of ambition, or 
bent upon nothing but sober, profound, and protracted 
studies. 



TOWN AND COUNTRY. 177 

The question respects exclusively neither of these 
supposed conditions or characters ; for, if it did, its de- 
cision would be easy. The claims of the city, for the 
one party, would be so absolute and overpowering, as 
to be quite irresistible ; while the claims of the coun- 
try, for the other party, would be no less cogent and 
convincing. 

Now, with this, the true aspect of the case, that is 
other things being equal, " which is preferable, town or 
country ?" I think I may assume a position in favor 
of the former, that cannot easily be controverted. I 
set out with the observation, that the town affords 
several advantages which cannot be had, nor compen- 
sated for, by a resort to the country. There is a cer^ 
tain polish and refinement acquired in city circles, or 
by the gentle attrition of city associations, whether 
for pleasure or business, which nothing in ordinary 
rural life, can either produce or atone for. 

This has been experienced always and everywhere. 
The very words civility, from civis, in Latin, a citizen ; 
urbanity, from urbs, a city, in the same language ; and, 
as has been affirmed by some, polite, from the Greek 
polis, a city ; these very words, I say, all expressive of 
that suavity and polish of manners that are essential 
to the true gentleman, show what has been the judg- 
ment of mankind for centuries, respecting the influence 
of cities upon human character. 

A second peculiar advantage of living in a city, 
arises from the multiplicity x and proximity of its 
means and appliances for comfort and convenience. 
Whoever has experienced the annoyances growing 
out of the privations of country life, in this respect, 

8* 



178 DEBATES IN FULL. 

will need no lengthy argument to make him feel its 
force. In the country, days and even weeks of delay 
and consequent discomfort, spring from the want of 
things that every corner, in a city, offers in perpetual 
abundance. 

In the country, with but few- intervals of relief, 
a walk in the roads is but a weary wading through 
mud, or snow, or a ceaseless contact with clouds of 
dust. In the city, except under a weak and inefficient 
administration of the laws, well-paved streets and 
walks, and withal, well cleaned and sprinkled, invite 
the pedestrian to out-door business or exercise. Even 
at night, when the country is everywhere shrouded 
in robes of darkness, the city, all brilliant with lamps, 
along the streets, and in the countless shops and saloons, 
offers both pleasure and safety in walking abroad. 

In the country, such is the temptation to imper- 
tinent curiosity, that everybody's business seems to 
be every other body's business, and all and each, like 
the Athenians of old, seem "to spend their time in 
nothing else, but either to tell, or to hear some new 
thing." In the city, every man has enough, and 
sometimes more than enough of his own business to 
attend to ; and so it comes to pass, that whether one 
eats or drinks, whether he rides or walks, marries or 
is given in marriage, buys or sells, or whatsoever he 
does, that is legal and proper, arrests no special atten- 
tion, and calls for no general talk or silly wonder- 
ment. 

A third peculiar benefit, in city life, is impressively 
known and felt only when we are taken dangerously ill, 
or suddenly meet with some bodily calamity. In the 



TOWN AND COUNTKY. 179 

country where the population is sparse, a single phy- 
sician is all that can ordinarily be supported, in a 
widely-extended district. 

It results, especially in cases of sudden and danger- 
ous emergency, that the greatest delay and difficulty 
are experienced in securing timely medical aid and at- 
tendance. In the city, on the contrary, physicians 
and surgeons of all grades, are ever at hand, because, 
in cities alone, can they, in such numbers, be supported 
and encouraged. None can fail at once to see the 
singular superiority, in this respect, of the city over the 
country. 

But, sir, I will pursue the subject no farther. I will 
not even claim the privilege, so freely accorded to 
others, that of calling to my aid the sweet voice of 
song. Eather let my arguments, whether worthy or 
worthless, stand all alone ; unaffected by the magic in- 
fluence of metre, the felicities of rhyme, or the airy 
forms of imagination. 

I will only remind you, in conclusion, that the ques- 
tion should be decided on general grounds ; that the 
respective claims of town and country are to be made 
upon those who are in a condition to choose, without 
the bias or necessity resulting from particular aims or 
personal and peculiar habits or infirmities. 

And, judging in this, the only fair. and philosophical 
manner, I claim for the city — that splendid result of 
human progress — that glorious achievement of asso- 
ciated labor and enterprise — that spacious field for the 
exercise of Christian virtues — that noble encourager 
of the arts and sciences — that matchless medium of 
trade and commerce — that wondrous combination of 



180 DEBATES IN FULL. 

comfort and convenience — that incomparable nursery 
of the suavities and amenities of life, a true and trium- 
phant decision in our favor. 

SPEECH OF THE PKESIDENT.* 

Gentlemen, — The debate, on the present occasion, 
though, in several respects, quite meritorious, exhibits, 
as it seems to me, several deficiencies deserving of no- 
tice. Some considerations, decidedly subordinate, 
have been injudiciously compelled to wear the aspect 
of weighty reasons ; while arguments of real power, 
through some want of skill or care in directing their 
force, have either been kept in the back ground, or 
made altogether to miss their aim. Besides the end of 
all wise discussion, — the elicitation of truth, has not been, 
in my judgment, sufficiently kept in view. The spirit 
of the debate seems rather to have been the spirit of 
conquest. 

I, therefore, propose, with your permission, to defer 
the duty of summing up and deciding, which devolves 
upon me, according to our rules, until the question has 
been more largely and liberally discussed ; proposing, 

* It is customary in some societies, after the debate, to leave the 
decision of the question to the judgment of the presiding officer. 
When such is the case, it is usual for him " to sum up," that is, to 
pass in review the principal arguments employed by the several 
speakers, compare them one with another, and so exhibit the grounds 
of hi's decision. 

In the present instance, the President is made to defer his deci- 
sion, and to take occasion, in its stead, to offer some suggestions 
respecting the mode of conducting a discussion. Such incidental 
hints or instructions a discreet presiding officer may often impart 
with great advantage. 



TOWN AND COUNTRY. 181 

for this purpose, that the debate be resumed at our 
next regular meeting. Meantime, allow me to occupy 
a few moments in venturing upon several suggestions 
and observations, designed, however feebly, to impart 
to the debates in this place a character more in har- 
mony with the professed object of our Association, 
which is, you know, the moral and intellectual improve- 
ment of our own members. 

I set out with this, as a prime rule of conduct in all 
debates,' — that truth, and truth only, must be sought 
after, cherished and advocated; while error, whether 
in ourselves or in others, whatever sacrifice it may cost 
us, must be avoided, discarded, and condemned. This 
is a hard rule to work by ; for such is the tenacity with 
which we cling to opinions and prejudices once enter- 
tained, that it is difficult to let them go, and more dif- 
ficult still to confess, even by implication, that we have 
been wrong. 

There is moreover, a certain love of victory, natural 
jfe> the human heart, which finds nourishment in con- 
tests of all kinds, and which often tempts the unwary 
disputant " to make the worse appear the better reason," 
and so secure a triumph at the expense of truth. You 
can not, therefore, my friends, be too cautious, too res- 
olute, or too self-denying, in the application of this rule. 

This leads me to a second precept, closely allied to 
the first, namely, to enter into the discussion of a ques- 
tion, with a mind prepared to accept truth, because it 
is truth ; no matter who presents it, or on what side it 
appears. Such a preparation, however, is not to be ac- 
quired without effort. It implies a relinquishment of 
all disposition to take unfair advantages. 



182 DEBATES IN FULL. 

It carefully excludes the spirit of perversion ; toler- 
ates none of those countless shifts and subtleties that 
officiously offer their services in the defense of error 
and prejudice ; admits what is true as readily as it de- 
nies what is false ; guards the speaker against the in- 
dulgence of petty personalities ; teaches him to exer- 
cise every forbearance and every courtesy, but at all 
hazards^ through whatever clouds of words, flashes of 
wit, assaults of satire, or thunder of oratory? to make 
his way steadily into the presence of all- enchanting 
all-satisfying truth. 

A third rule of discussion is, — to study the subject 
of debate well beforehand, and, in so doing, take the 
widest and most liberal views ; determining your posi- 
tion only after pondering deeply both sides of the ques- 
tion, and carefully measuring and comparing the forces 
of each respectively. And when once you have chosen 
your position, seek to fortify it in your own minds by 
an orderly and apt arrangement of all your arguments; 
so that when you come to be put upon the defense, you 
may have perfectly at command the whole of your re- 
sources. 

This being done, have in readiness for detail and 
specification, those weak and untenable grounds which, 
by previous study, you have ascertained to be among 
the defenses of those who take the opposite side. This 
will command for you the respect that ever falls to 
him who is found to .be acquainted with his theme, be- 
sides saving you the mortification of confessing igno- 
rance and talking at a venture. 

The fourth and last rule which time here allows me 
to offer, is,— ever to observe the rules of order and the 



TOWN AND COUNTRY. 183 

courtesies of debate. " Order," it lias been well said, 
" is Heaven's first law ;" and nowhere, in the universe, 
is that law more indispensable than in a deliberative 
assembly. 

Every speaker should feel himself under the strictest 
obligation to maintain in practice, as in precept, the 
rules and regulations adopted for the government and 
conduct of our meetings. Nor is this all. Above and 
beyond all the written requirements of the case, there 
is a certain educated refinement of manners, — a suavity 
of look, of word, and of act, without which all dis- 
cussion savors of insolent contradiction, all debate sinks 
down into noisy wrangling. 

He, then, who indulges much in the use of repartee, 
or satire, or ridicule, or whose deportment is so shaped 
as to wound the feelings of his opponent, thereby 
proves himself a practical enemy to the investigation 
of truth ; since his conduct shuts up all the reliable 
avenues to conviction, turns the discussion into a con- 
test of abusive utterances, and, instead of friendship, 
generates a brood of antipathies and resentments, that 
not only outlast the excitement of the occasion, but 
often go with us through all subsequent life. It is, 
therefore, impossible to be too strict in the observance 
of this last rule ; for, in debating societies, as in all 
others, the precept of the Apostle is equally imperative, 
"Let all things be done decently and in order." 

I forbear, Gentlemen, further to test your patience. 
I have no apology to offer for thus assuming to myself 
the office of an adviser ; unless it can be found in the 
well-meant, if not well-considered, endeavor to advance 
the common interests of our Association. 



SECTION XL 

DEBATES IN OUTLINE. 

"TTTHAT are here called Debates in Outline, are not, 
* " nor are they designed to be, elaborate synopses 
of all the arguments pro and con, that may be adduced 
in discussing the several questions proposed. They 
are to serve merely as hints and suggestions, as thoughts 
likely to beget thoughts. 

He, therefore, that consults these outlines with any 
view to improvement, should consider their design, 
and act upon it. He should regard them not so much 
as arguments, as the sources of arguments : keeping 
always in mind, that what we ourselves excogitate, 
however humble, and however often thought of by 
others, is, for all the purposes of mental training, a 
thousand times more valuable than the best and the 
most brilliant arguments, if merely borrowed from 
other people. 

Yet, reading and conversation are not, therefore, to 
be despised or neglected, as useless or injurious. The 
error to be avoided, is that of substituting reading 
and talking for the weightier matters of thinking and 
reasoning. 



DEBATES IN OUTLINE. 185 

Can we reasonably indulge the hope of Universal Peace f 

First Speaker. {Affirmative). — That war is unnec- 
essary, and, therefore, unjustifiable, is a conviction 
which reflecting men will find it difficult to resist. 
Every fresh experience serves only to weaken our 
confidence in the arbitration of the sword, and 
strengthen that which we have in the decisions of 
reason. This renders the hope of universal peace 
quite a rational one. 

Second Speaker. (Negative.) — Wars generally 
originate in causes inseparable from the character of 
human nature, — ambition and selfishness. As long as 
these last, there will be war and bloodshed. You 
must change the radical nature of man, therefore, be- 
fore you can hope for universal peace. 

Third Speaker. (Affirmative) — It is the glory of 
Christianity, that it changes the heart of man; im- 
planting therein, in place of the evil passions which we 
by nature inherit, or, by practice, too readily acquire, 
those qualities of heart and mind, which cannot, for a 
moment, tolerate the presence of war. 

Fourth Speaker. (Negative.) — Experience shows 
that Christians do not scruple to go to war. Some of 
the fiercest and foulest contests have been carried on by 
Christians, and that, too, under the name of Chris- 
tianity. Witness the Crusades. 

Fifth Speaker. (Affirmative?) — What are often 
called Christian nations, said an acute and pious 



186 DEBATES IN OUTLINE. 

clergyman of New England, should rather be called 
christened nations. It is not the name and profession 
of Christ merely, that is to eradicate evil from the 
world, but the true spirit of his religion. That re- 
ligion certainly promises the reign of universal peace. 
It is, therefore, reasonable to expect it. "^ 



Ought Emulation in Schools to he encouraged t 

First Speaker. {Affirmative) — People never put 
forth their best efforts without the stimulus of rivalry. 
There must be something to be gained, as also some- 
thing to be lost, or all energy will be paralyzed. This 
is the experience of mankind, and it ought to have 
weight in our decision. 

Second Speaker. (Negative) — Emulation is the 
parent of antipathy. Its presence in schools is fraught 
with mischief. It defeats all attempts at cultivating 
the spirit of brotherhood, because it virtually sets one 
against another. 

Third Speaker. (Affirmative) — Eivalry, in a 
school, is not necessarily bitter and vindictive. It 
must be generous. It must be regarded and used as 
a healthful incentive. It may be perverted, but this 
should not lead to its entire disuse. 

Fourth Speaker. (Negative) — All rivalry presup- 
poses, that some must be beaten. Few only can be 
rewarded as victors ; the many must suffer, however 



DEBATES IN OUTLINE. 187 

diligent, or otherwise deserving, the mortifications of 
open defeat. 

Fifth Speaker. {Affirmative) — The chances of suc- 
cess are equal, and, therefore, the unsuccessful have 
no right to complain. In the great world without, 
to which schools ought to be preparatory, rewards are 
perpetually made dependent upon the same conditions, 
and no one complains, or has a right to complain. 

Sixth Speaker {Negative) — The chances of suc- 
cess are not equal, because there is no necessary equality 
of talent or genius in the competitors. The whole is 
arranged, as though every thing depended upon the 
industry and perseverance of the rival candidates ; 
whereas the most laborious and persistent effort is often 
the least successful, because nature has denied the requi- 
site measure of ability. The. rivalry thus becomes the 
source of injustice, of bitter heartburnings and rancor- 
ous hostility. 



Is Party Spirit productive of more Good than Evil f 

First Speaker {Affirmative) — Experience has 
shown, that all men act better under close supervision, 
than when left to themselves. Party spirit generates 
watchfulness on both sides, and so keeps both sides 
close to the path of duty. 

Second Speaker. {Negative) — Party spirit with- 
draws the mind and heart from our common country and 
her best interests to place them on a particular party. 



188 DEBATES IN OUTLINE. 

It makes us eager to carry personal and private meas- 
ures, and forgetful of, or unjust to, the general well- 
being. It makes the chief concern to be, not how shall 
the whole country prosper, but how shall a party tri- 
umph? 

Third Speaker. {Affirmative) — It is well known, 
that, men long in power are apt to become haughty and 
oppressive, and that, unwatched, they will fall into many 
wrong practices. Party spirit, in such case, acts as a 
corrective. It takes unfit men out of office, and sup- 
plies their places with others more suitable. It thus 
operates, also as a warning to those who, in official sta- 
tion, are prone to oppression or injustice. 

Fourth Speaker. {Negative.) — Party spirit begets 
such rancor, as ought never to exist in one man's heart 
towards another. Under this influence, men will quar- 
rel, fight and even kill one another, though citizens of 
the same city, and professedly loving the same country, 
and the same civil institutions. 

Fifth Speaker. {Affirmative) — Party spirit may be 
rancorous, but that is true of the spirit that operates 
even in religious disputes. Shall all discussions in poli- 
tics and religion, all parties and denominations cease, 
because men will sometimes quarrel about these things ? 
Are not the disputes occasioned by party spirit, the 
means of turning men's minds upon political rights 
and privileges, which might otherwise be overlooked 
and lost? 

Sixth Speaker. {Negative) — The spirit of party is 



DEBATES EST OUTLINE. 189 

not to be confounded with, and mistaken for, the spirit 
of patriotism. It is strictly a selfish, not a benevolent 
spirit. It is an unscrupulous spirit. It is not ashamed 
to resort to falsehood to accomplish its ends. It is the 
spirit that results in urging men to slander their neigh- 
bors, in producing riots, in civil war and bloodshed. 

Seventh Speaker. {Affirmative) — Party spirit en- 
ables the poor, but honest man to get office, as well as 
the rich. It brings associated effort and means to 
bear, in such case, and so prevents that odious aris- 
tocracy of money, which is ever ready to show its 
haughty airs and oppressive domination. 

Eighth Speaker. {Negative) — Party spirit, instead 
of being the friend and supporter of the poor, but 
honest man, is, in general, the sadly misdirected agent 
of the worst men and the worst measures. It arrays 
citizen against citizen, and deters good men from be- 
coming candidates for office, by the certain doom of 
being exposed, in their private characters, to every 
outrage and indignity which slander and malignity can 
conceive or execute. Many countries have already 
been ruined by this execrable spirit ; and, in our own, 
its destructive tendencies are every day becoming 
more and more apparent. 



Are Debating Societies more beneficial than injurious ? 

First Speaker. {Affirmative.) — Whatever tends to 
unfold truth and explode error, is doubtless useful. 



190 DEBATES IN OUTLINE. 

Debating societies, well managed, do this, and, there- 
fore, justly claim to be always far more beneficial than 
injurious. 

Second Speakee. {Negative) — Debating Societies 
are usually composed of young persons, who are 
apt to treat the gravest and profoundest subjects in a 
light and superficial manner. In this way, minds not 
yet formed by study and reflection, are more likely to 
injure than to benefit one another. 

Thied Speakee. {Affirmative) — There is no such 
thing as unmixed good in the world. If, therefore, 
you reject Debating Societies on the ground of their 
being liable to abuse, you may as well reject hundreds 
of other good things for the same reason. They in- 
voke thought, lead to useful comparisons of ideas, 
and so strengthen the mind. 

Foueth Speakee. {Negative) — They beget a dis- 
putatious spirit ; making people delight not so much 
in the acquisition of knowledge and the discovery of 
truth, as in captious criticism, and in the pride of 
victory. 

Fifth Speakee. {Affirmative) — Debating Societies 
encourage the disposition to reading and study, afford 
excellent opportunities for practice in extempora- 
neous speaking, place us in the way of wholesome 
criticism, and furnish the mind with a wide circle of 
ideas. 



DEBATES IN OUTLINE. 191 



Have the Crusades proved more beneficial than injurious 
to mankind '9 

First Speaker. (Affirmative.) — The first result of 
the Crusades was to. break the chains of bondage, 
moral, mental, and political, which held in abject 
slavery, as it were, the nations of Europe. This they 
did, by discovering to the down-trodden and ignorant 
masses the secret of their own strength, and enriching 
their minds with knowledge, previously and other- 
wise inaccessible. 

Second Speaker. (Negative.) — What we call the 
Crusades were nothing but those ferocious wars, waged 
in the name of religion, and often carried on in a 
spirit befitting savage marauders rather than the friends 
of the Cross. The ill effect of the Crusades upon the 
Christian religion itself, was incalculable: destroying 
confidence in the truth and purity of a faith, in the 
cause of which, professedly, such immoralities and bar- 
barities were committed. 

Third Speaker. (Affirmative.) — The origin or se- 
cret motive of the Crusades is not here in dispute. 
The spirit in which they were conducted, it is not our 
present business to consider or characterize. Bad or 
good, these belong not properly to the matter in hand. 
Have the Crusades resulted well, not had they a pure 
origin, is the question. They certainly revolutionized 
■fiie institutions and customs of the day, disseminated 
information, gave unity of purpose to masses hitherto 



192 DEBATES IN OUTLINE. 

divided by distance and by feuds, and planted the 
seeds of civil liberty, which, have come up in the shape 
of well-ordered and free states, and otherwise variously 
improved the condition of the world. 

Fourth Speaker. {Negative.) — The spirit of perse- 
cution generated or fostered by those wicked expedi- 
tions, which has since, in so many instances, displayed 
its terrible rage, is among the results of the crusades. 
If, therefore, we look exclusively at results, this one 
bad, horribly bad, consequence of them, ought to out- 
weigh a score of those advantages commonly said to 
have come from them. 

Fifth Speaker. {Affirmative) — JSTo extensive refor- 
mation was ever made in any age, or country, that did 
carry with it the necessity of strong measures, and 
exhibit from the blindness and weakness of even 
good men, certain excesses deeply to be deplored. 
The career of Cromwell, though ultimately produc- 
tive of inestimable benefits, was often marked by 
acts that his best friends must forever, and deeply 
regret. 

Sixth Speaker. {Negative.) — It is taken for grant- 
ed, generally, that numberless benefits, moral, social 
and political, flowed from the Crusades, which can- 
not be shown to have had this origin. Besides, all 
these benefits might, could, and in due time, would, 
have been realized from the exercise of truly Christian 
virtues, without resort to barbarous wars. 



DEBATES IN OUTLINE. 193 



Is there more of real than of imaginary evil in the world f 

Fiest Speakee. Affirmative.) — All evil is real, what- 
ever its source. But of that kind which is meant in 
this question, that is to saj, evil created by causes 
really existent, and not merely imaginary, the amount 
is vastly greater than that which is the offspring of 
fancy. Hunger, cold, disease and the like realities, 
leave no parallel in the list of fancied adversities. 

Second Speakee. {Negative.) — The terrors of imagi- 
nary calamity beset us from childhood to old age. Who 
ean estimate the mental agonies of childhood, suffer- 
ing under the absurd impression of ghosts hovering 
around a neighboring tomb, or graveyard or dwelling ? 
What chilling terrors often shake the frames of older 
folks under the same delusive apprehensions ? 

Thied Speakee. {Affirmative) — The cases even of 
children, to say nothing of older people, affected by fear 
of spectres, are comparatively few. But the real sources 
of misery, those which reason cannot dispel, are le- 
gion. 

Foueth Speakee. {Negative) — Apprehended evils 
are, perhaps, quite as numerous as any real ones. They 
are, moreover, all the more severe, as they are aggra- 
vated indefinitely by the same fertile faculty, that orig- 
inates them. Fancy, unrestrained by reason, is the 
mother of endless despondent day-dreams, the proline 
source of hypochondriac or maniacal hallucination; 
often the cause of incurable madness. What evil is 
comparable to the loss of reason ? 

9 



194 DEBATES IN OUTLINE. 

Is a lie ever justifiable? 

First Speaker. {Affirmative) — A lie is a story told 
with the intention to deceive. The question, therefore, 
may be resolved into this, — Is there any such thing as 
innocent deception? It is innocent, when practiced 
merely for sport, or for the benefit of the party deceiv- 
ed ; as, where a sick child that dreads medicine, is as- 
sured, that it is not medicine, but something else, or 
when a robber is diverted from his purpose, by a time- 
ly and ingenious falsehood. 

Second Speaker. (Negative.) — There is no such 
thing as a " timely falsehood": all lying is untimely, be- 
cause it is always, directly "or indirectly, the fruitful 
source of mischief and misery. Telling lies, in order 
to induce children to perform a duty, is only teaching 
them indirectly to sacrifice truth to expediency. They 
will follow your example, and apply it to cases other 
than those of seeming necessity. You may sometimes 
ward off present evil, perhaps, by resort to falsehood ; 
but the injury done to truth, in all such cases, is great- 
er than that avoided by its violation. 

Third Speaker. (Affirmative.) — May I not save my 
life, which is endangered by the assaultof a madman, 
by practicing a deception upon him ? May I not cheer 
and solace a despondent patient, by exciting false, but 
flattering hopes ? Shall I deny my correspondent the 
courtesy implied in the usual close of a letter — " Your 
Obt. Servant, &c, &c." merely because it is strictly a de- 
parture from truth ? May not a general practice false- 



DEBATES IN OUTLINE. 195 

hood to deceive and embarrass his enemy ? May not 
one who has fallen into the hands of savages, save him- 
self from their ferocity, if necessary, by lying ? 

Fourth Speaker. {Negative.) — It is easy to multiply 
cases, wherein lying would- seem to be innocent, be- 
cause it procures a benefit. But all such argumenta- 
tion falls instantly to the ground, when you remember, 
that, whatever may be our ideas of expediency and in- 
expediency, of right and of wrong, the rule which God 
has established, in the case, is one that admits of no 
exceptions. There is no license to lie ; for we may not 
do evil even that good may come. 
B (JO -^ ^. 



Which is the more detrimental, to be too credulous or 
too suspicious? 

First Speaker. Credulity is the parent of serious 
evils in every department of life. It invites imposi- 
tion, and brings the greater pain, because "it is ever at- 
tended with the consciousness^ that we are deceived by 
our own folly. 

Second Speaker. Perpetual suspicion is perpetual 
terror. It were better to be often deceived by false ap- 
pearances and promises, than to suffer the evil of fre- 
quently rejecting what is true and reliable, under the 
impression that deception lurks in everything. 

Third Speaker. Suspicion saves a man of business 
from being ruined in his dealings. It throws continual 



196 DEBATES m OUTLINE. 

safeguards around his transactions, while credulity ex- 
poses him at every turn to the wiles of sharpers. 

Fourth Speaker. Suspicion may often save a man 
from the wiles of sharpers, but just as often cuts him 
off from the intercourse and sympathy of honest 
men. It begets in the soul foul opinions of mankind, 
and is apt to make the man that harbors it, just what 
he deems other men to be. Credulity, on the other 
hand, takes kind and liberal views of humanity. It 
is one of the phases of charity — the spirit that " think- 
eth no evil." 

Fifth Speaker. Credulity is the greatest of all 
cheats. It cheats a man out of his understanding. It 
makes him see all things in the wrong light. It believes 
what is false, as readily as it receives what is true. It 
swallows the lie that is ruinous to a friend, as quickly 
as it takes in the truest statements against a malicious 
enemy. It confounds all the ordinary distinctions be- 
tween what is probable and improbable. It ignores all 
just and safe discrimination. 

Sixth Speaker. Suspicion shuts out of the heart 
all that gives confidence. Now, confidence between 
man and man is the very foundation of society, the in- 
dispensable element of the social compact. Whatever 
weakens and disturbs this feeling, wars against the best 
interests of mankind. It divides friends, it excites an- 
tipathies, it deranges business, it dissolves the most ten- 
der and the most sacred connections and associations 
of every kind. 



DEBATES IN OUTLINE. 197 

Is the miser more injurious to society than the 
spendthrift f 

First Speaker. {Affirmative) — Miser means miser- 
able, wretched. The application of this name to a per- 
son of covetous disposition, sufficiently evinces the 
judgment of mankind respecting the influence of 
avarice. It makes a man mean and miserable. It 
is hardly possible, by any stretch of prodigality, to 
injure one's own moral nature to the extent created by 
the habitual exercise of covetous practices. " Covet- 
ousness is idolatry." This is Bible testimony. It has 
no god but money. 

Second Speaker. (Negative.) — Does not the spend- 
thrift, also, bring irreparable mischief on himself? 
When exhausted of his means, he is doubly poor ; not 
only without money, but without the habits necessary 
to get and keep it. What must be his remorse, too, 
in such case, knowing that his wastefulness has brought 
him to want, when, had he been frugal, he would 
have had enough, and something, perchance, to spare, 
to relieve the necessities of others. 

Third Speaker. (Affirmative.) — The miser is a 
voluntary pauper. He denies himself and his family 
the comforts of life, while he has money in abundance. 
He denies his children thorough educational training, 
and, by his example, inspires others with the love 
of money, which is " the root of all evil." 

Fourth Speaker. (Negative.) — If the miser denies 
bread to his children by his penurious habits, the 



198 DEBATES IN OUTLINE. 

spendthrift does precisely the same thing by his ex- 
travagance. The doom of poverty settles equally on 
both. He not only dissipates his own private means, 
to an extent that cripples all proper business energy, 
but is among those who, by squandering capital, pre- 
vent those extensive commercial enterprises that tend 
so much to elevate and enrich a nation. 

Fifth Speaker. {Affirmative) — The miser, in order , 
to hoard, withdraws large sums from the circulation 
of a country. He thus prevents money from doing its 
appropriate work, and so diminishes the prosperity of 
a community. 

Sixth Speaker. {Negative) — The tendency of the 
course of a spendthrift is evil in the extreme ; because 
it seduces young people into habits of expense and 
recklessness, and is wholly at war with the spirit of 
industry and economy. It is all the more pernicious, 
because it disguises its wickedness under the name of 
generosity ; and, under that plea, is not unfrequently 
guilty of the grossest injustice. 

Seventh Speaker. {Affirmative) — The habit of 
regarding money as the chief good, and as, in itself, a 
thing greatly to be sought after, is apt to generate a 
spirit of dishonesty. It not only makes men mean, 
but it makes them unjust. But, if it had no other ill 
effect, its tendency to make a few immensely rich, 
while the many are distressedly poor, renders it more 
dangerous to society than extravagance ever can be. 

Eighth Speaker. {Negative) — Nothing can be 



DEBATES IN OUTLINE. 199 

made out of the argument, that avarice generates dis- 
honesty, for prodigality is well known to do the same 
thing, only in a higher degree. How many persons, 
young and old, have been utterly ruined by yielding 
to the temptations to dishonesty, inspired by habits 
of extravagance ! Both of these characters are worthy 
of all condemnation, but that of the spendthrift is the 
more injurious to society, because it wastes the rewards 
of industry, and offers a greater number and variety 
of temptations to the young and the thoughtless. 



Are Theatres more "beneficial than injurious f 

Fiest Speaker. (Affirmative) — Whatever exposes 
vice, and commends virtue, is undeniably a public 
benefit. This is the special office of the drama. It 
discovers the secret springs of wicked deeds, brings 
virtue out, at last, always triumphant, and so gives 
wholesome and impressive warning to those disposed 
to evil. It is, in short, a sort of school of morals. 

Second Speaker. {Negative.) — If the office of the 
drama is to expose vice and commend virtue, it cer- 
tainly has not been very true to its obligations. Plays, 
for the most part, abound in obscenities and pro- 
fanities. They represent vicious characters, in colors 
so fascinating, that unreflecting people rather admire 
than condemn them. 

If the theatre be considered a school of morality, 
the devil, as Dr. Dwight has observed, must have 



200 DEBATES IN OUTLIKE. 

turned schoolmaster. The moral instructions of the 
stage, even when unexceptionable, both in principle 
and in language, fail of their effect, because not given 
in the right time, the right place, and under the right 
circumstances. 

Third Speaker. {Affirmative.) — Whatever excep- 
tions may be found or imagined, the general rule is, 
that the drama is decidedly in favor of sound morals. 
If the moral teachings of the theatre fail of their ob- 
ject, the fault lies not in the teaching, but in the dull- 
ness or perverseness of the pupils. "We might as well 
take exception to the teachings of the pulpit, because 
so many turn a deaf ear to the voice of the preacher. 
It should be considered a great advantage in the 
theatre, that it attracts and teaches classes of people, 
whom the appointed agencies of the church seldom 
reach or affect. 

Fourth Speaker. {Negative.) — It ■ is idle to talk 
of the moral tendencies of the stage, when it is quite 
notorious, that actors and actresses themselves, to say 
nothing whatever of the auditors, are, with few excep- 
tions, not a little profligate in character. The plays, 
whether you regard the language, the sentiment, the 
dress, or other kindred circumstances, are often highly 
objectionable in point of delicacy and refinement. 
What must be the character and tendency of that 
teaching, which attracts and delights the vicious, and 
which exercises no corrective influence, either upon 
the players themselves, or those who habitually attend 
upon their performances ? 



DEBATES IN OUTLINE. 201 

Fifth Speaker. {Affirmative) — The stage is con- 
fessedly beneficial in a literary point of view, whatever 
we say about its moral bearings. For justness of pro- 
nunciation, for true emphasis, for appropriate gestures, 
for all the graces of oratory, it stands pre-eminent. 
^ Why is it," said a distinguished clergyman once to a 
great actor, "that you players are able to excel our 
profession in awakening and prolonging attention?" 
"It is," said the actor, "because we represent fiction 
as if it were truth, while you represent truth as if it 
were fiction !" The theatre is a school of oratory, and 
the excellence of its instructions is well attested by 
the fact, that extracts from plays are universally em- 
ployed in schools and colleges, as the best exercises in 
elocution. 

Sixth Speaker. (Negative) — It is not true that the 
pronunciation of the player is always in accordance 
with the most approved standards. In the matter of 
emphasis, gesture, and whatever else may be used to 
aid in giving the true effect to a piece, it is not denied, 
that great actors take great pains. But, in general, it 
may be affirmed with entire truth, that the theatre af- 
fords very imperfect exhibitions of character. If 
Shakspeare's plays be excepted, few others will -be 
found, which do not frequently represent vice and 
virtue in strange, improbable, and often impossible 
situations. In the acting, moreover, there is little, or 
nothing, true to our every-day experience. 

Seventh Speaker. (Affirmative)—^ Theatres are 
excellent means of amusement. They mingle what is 
9* 






202 DEBATES IN OUTLINE. 

useful, with what is entertaining, and, as people must 
have entertainment, the theatre becomes a great public 
benefit by affording it. In all countries some public 
entertainments have been found necessary. The 
Olympic and other games, &c, &c, sufficiently at- 
test this. 

Eighth Speakee. {Negative.) — A man's character 
may often be determined, in some measure, by the 
character of his amusements. Now, what are the 
amusements at the theatre ? Are they such as good 
men, — such as people of the best and purest morals, 
can fully approve and patronize ? Are they not no- 
toriously, such in general, as bring together and enter- 
tain the vile, the ignorant, the abandoned ? 

Ninth Speaker. {Affirmative.) — The just objects 
and character of the legitimate drama are not to be 
confounded with everything in that form, presented 
on the stage. The theatre, properly managed, is 
everything that has been claimed for it in this debate, 
and more. It is, then, emphatically a good school ; the 
players being good men and women, the plays being 
works of genius, abounding in all that is fitted to mend 
the heart, to improve the taste, to please the imagina- 
tion, and to delight the eye and the ear, while the 
audience, refined, cultivated, or at least moral and 
respectable, meet and part, not only without injury, 
but with positive benefit. Can any one doubt the 
utility of such a theatre ? 

Tenth Speaker. {Negative.) — The point to be set- 
tled in this controversy is not what theatres might be, 



DEBATES IN OUTLINE. 203 

but what they are. As they now exist, and are man- 
aged, and must continue to be managed, in all like- 
lihood, they are the sources of evil in many forms. 
What with the ill tendencies of the plays themselves, 
what with the ill influence on the players and their 
hearers, what with the late hours and feverish ex- 
citement which they necessitate, what with the bad 
associations they throw in the way of the young and 
the innocent, what with the drinking shops, the gam- 
ing tables, and other nameless snares and abominations 
therein and thereabout abounding, the theatre seems 
really incapable of producing any good result what- 
ever. 



SECTION XII. 

QUESTIONS WITH REFERENCES. 

TT-ERE we introduce a series of questions, with refer- 
-"• enees under each to authorities or sources of 
information. We have not thought it desirable to 
make these references numerous: the object being 
rather to afford data for the exercise of mind than to 
throw open volumes exhausting the subjects in dis- 
pute. 

I. 

OUGHT THE PRESS TO BE WITHOUT LEGAL RESTRICTION? 

Encyclopaedia Americana, — Article, " Books, Censorship op." 
Milton on the Liberty of the Press. 
Hume's Essay on the Liberty of the Press. 
Coleridge, — The Eriend. Essay XXI. 
Dwight's Decisions. 

II. 

are fictitious writings more beneficial than injurious? 
Dunlop's History of Fiction, from the earliest Greek Romances to the 

Novels of the Present Day. 
Walter Scott's Criticism on Novels and Romances. 
Akenside's Pleasures of the Imagination. 
Goldsmith's Citizen of the World, — Letter LIII. 
Murray's Morality of Eiction, or an Inquiry into the Tendency of 

Eictitious Narratives. 



QUESTIONS WITH REFERENCES. 205 

in. 

DO SPECTRES, OR GHOSTS APPEAR? 

Penny Cyclopedia, — Article, " Apparition." 
Walter Scott's Demonology and Witchcraft 
Hlbbert's Philosophy of Apparitions. 
Dwight's Decisions. 

Thacher's Essay on Demonology, Apparitions, and Popular Super- 
stitions. 
Upham's Lectures on Salem Witchcraft. 
Newnham's Essay on Superstition. 
Defoe's History of Apparitions. 

IT. 

"WAS THE BANISHMENT OF NAPOLEON TO ST. HELENA JUSTIFIABLE ? 

Alison's History of Europe. 

Thiers' History of the French Empire. 

O'Meara'S Napoleon in Exile. 

Scott's Life of Napoleon. 

Abbott's Life of Napoleon. 

Hazlitt's Life of Napoleon. 

Montholon's History of the Captivity of Napoleon at St. Helena. 

Bourrienne's Memoirs of Napoleon Bonaparte. 

V. 

IS WAR JUSTIFIABLE ? 

Chalmers on the Hatefulness of War. 

Channtng on War. 

Jay's War and Peace. 

War Inconsistent with the Religion of Jesus Christ, (New York 1815.) 

Dwight's Decisions. 

VI. 

ought classical studies to be encouraged? 
Locke's Thoughts on Education. 
Robert Hall on Classical Learning. 
Whewell's University Education. 
Sears, Edwards and Felton on Classical Studies. 
Donaldson's New Cratylus, — Introductory Chapter. 
Dwight's Decisions. 
Arnold's Miscellaneous Writings,— Article, « Rugby School." 



206 QUESTIONS WITH REFERENCES. 

VII. 

DOES GEOLOGY CONFIRM THE MOSAIC ACCOUNT OP THE CREATION? 

Lyell's Principles of Geology. 

Hitchcock's Religion of Geology. 

Buckland's Geology and Mineralogy. 

"Wood's Mosaic History of the Creation, illustrated from the Present 
State of Science. 

Tayler Lewis' Six Days of Creation. 

Ira Hill's Theory of the Formation of the Earth. 

" The Two Records — The Mosaic and the Geological ;" a Lec- 
ture delivered before the Young Men's Christian Association, in 
Exeter Hall, London. 

VIII. 

IS THE STUDY OF MYTHOLOGY MORE ADVANTAGEOUS THAN HURTFUL? 

Keightley's Mythology. 

Dwight's Grecian and Roman Mythology. 

Bryant's Analysis of Ancient Mythology. 

Sir William Jones on the Gods of Greece, Italy and India. 

IX. 

was the feudal system beneficial? 
Penny Cyclopedia; also, Brande's Encyclopedia of Science, 

Literature, and Arts, — Article, " Eeudal System." 
Hallam's State of Europe during the Middle Ages. 
Bertngton's Literary History of the Middle Ages. 

X. 

IS the sentiment — 

" For forms of government let fools contest; 
What 's best administered, is best" — 

justifiable? 
Encyclopedia Americana, — Article, "Natural Law." 
Algernon Sidney's Discourses on Government. 
Montesquieu's Spirit of Laws. 
Carlyle's Chartism. 

Adams' Defense of the Constitution of the United States. 
De Tocquevelle's Democracy in America. 

Austin's Constitutional Republicanism in Opposition to Fallacious 
Federalism. 



QUESTIONS WITH REFERENCES. 207 

XI. 

ARE CRITICAL REVIEWS ADVANTAGEOUS TO SCIENCE AND LITERATURE ? 

Encyclopedia Americana, — Article, " Reviews." 
Coleridge's Biog. Literaria, — Chap. XXI. 
Byron's British. Bards and Scotch Reviewers. 
Dwight's Decisions. 
Margaret S. Fuller's Short Essay on Critics. 

XII. 

IS PHRENOLOGY ENTITLED TO THE RANK OP A TRUE SCIENCE? 

Spurzheim's Examination of Objections to Phrenology. 

Combe's Elements of Phrenology. 

Journal of the London Phrenological Society. 

American Phrenological Journal. 

Reese's Phrenology known by its Fruits. 

Caldwell's Phrenology Vindicated, and Anti-Phrenology Unmasked. 

xin. 

IS THE MAXIM, " A POET IS BORN SUCH, NOT MADE," TRUE ? 

Encyclopedia Britannica, — Article, " Poetry." 
Robert Hall on Poetic G-enius. 

Macaulay's Essay on Milton. — Modern British Essayists, Yol. I. 
Johnson's Rasselas, — Chap. 

Jeffrey's Review of Campbell's Specimens of British Poets. — 
Modern. British Essayists, Vol. VI. 

xrv. 

CAN THE EXISTENCE AND ATTRD3UTES OF THE SUPREME BEING BE 
DEDUCED FROM THE LIGHT OF NATURE ? 

Cudworth's Intellectual System of the Universe. 
Paley's Natural Theology. 
BrtdGewater Treatises. 

Sturm's Reflections on the Being and Attributes of God. 
Plato against the Atheists ; or the Tenth Book of the Dialogue on 
Laws. By Tayler Lewis, LL.D. 



208 QUESTIONS WITH EEFEEENCES. 

XV. 

IS CAPITAL PUNISHMENT JUSTIFIABLE? 

Encyclopedia Americana, — Article, " Death, Punishment op." 

Spear's Essays on the Punishment of Death. 

Edinburgh Beview, Yol. XXXV., p. 320. 

Dwight's Decisions. 

Cheever's Defense of Capital Punishment, and Lewis' Essay on the 
Ground and Eeason of Punishment. 

Bradford's Inquiry on the Punishment of Death in Pennsylvania. 

Sullivan's Eeport to the Legislature of New York on Capital Punish- 
ment. 

XVI. 
was the execution of mart queen of scots justifiable? 

Eobertson's History of Scotland. 

Hume's History of England. 

Bell's Life of Mary. 

Abbott's Life of Mary Queen of Scots. 

Tttler's Historical and Critical Inquiry into the Evidence produced 
against Mary Queen of Scots. 

Whitaker's Vindication of Mary Queen of Scots. 

XVII. 

IS THERE A STANDARD OF TASTE? 

Blair's Lectures on Ehetoric. 

Kames' Elements of Criticism. 

Alison on the Nature and Principles of Taste. 

Mackenzie's Theory of Taste. 

M'Dermott's Dissertation on Taste. 

Gerard's Essay on Taste. 

XVIII. 

IS THERE MORE TO APPROVE THAN CONDEMN IN THE CHARACTER OF 
OLIVER CROMWELL? 

Carlyle's Letters and Speeches of Oliver Cromwell. 
Southey's Life of Cromwell. 
Hume's History of England. 
Clarendon's History of the Eebellion. 
Noble's Memoirs of the Cromwell Family. 
"Walter Scott's Tales of a Grandfather. 
Godwin's History of the Commonwealth of England. 



QUESTIONS WITH REFERENCES. 209 

XIX. 

WHICH WAS THE GREATER POET, HOMER OR MILTON? 

Addison's Papers on the Paradise Lost, in the Spectator. 

Blair's Lectures on Rhetoric. 

Coleridge on the Study of the Greek Poets. 

Thirwall's History of Greece, Vol. I. 

Pope's Preface to his Translation of the Iliad. 

XX. 

are the mental faculties op the sexes equal? 
"Walker's Woman Physiologically Considered, as to Mind, Morals, &c. 
Ret. Sidney Smith's Essay on Female Education — Modern British 

Essayists, Yol. III. 
Mrs. Jameson's Characteristics of Women, Moral, Poetical, Historical. 
Alme' Martin's Education of Mothers ; Translated by Edwin Lee. 
Foreign Quarterly Review, No. XXXTTT, — Article II. 
Westminster Review, No. LXYin, — Article II. 
Dwight's Decisions. 

Margaret S. Fuller's Woman in the Nineteenth Century. 
Maria Child's History of Women. 
Starling's Noble Deeds of Women, or Examples of Female Courage 

and "Virtue. 

XXI. 
IS the prevailing system of education for females worthy of 

ENCOURAGEMENT ? 

Hannah More's Accomplished Lady, or Strictures on the Modern 

System of Female Education. 
Rev. Sidney Smith's Essay on Female Education. — Modern British 

Essayists. Vol. in. 
Fenelon on the Education of a Daughter. 
Mrs. Sigourney's Letters to Young Ladies. 
Miss Sedgwick's Means and Ends, or Self-Training. 

S xxh. 

is there sufficlent reason for a belief ln the national res- 
toration OF THE JEWS. 

Millman's History of the Jews. 

Cunningham's Letters and Essays on Subjects connected with the 

Conversion and Restoration of the Jews. 
Bicheno's Restoration of the Jews, the Crisis of all Nations. 



210 QUESTIONS WITH REFERENCES. 

xxin. 

OUGHT SECEET SOCIETIES TO BE TOLERATED? 

Robinson's Proofs of a Conspiracy against all the Religions and 

Governments of Europe, carried on by Free Masons, Illuminati, 

and Reading Societies. 
Arnold's Philosophical History of Free Masonry, and other Secret 

Societies. 
Encyclopedia Americana, — Articles, " Jesuits, or Society op 

Jesus," and " Jesuits, written by a Jesuit." 
Stone's Letters on Masonry and Anti-Masonry. 
Lawrie's History of Free Masonry. 
Secret Societies of the Middle Ages ; (in the Library of Entertaining 

Knowledge.) 

XXIV. 
are banks more useful than injurious to a community? 
Tucker's Theory of Money and Banks Investigated 
Gilbert's History and Principles of Banking. 
Logan's Popular Exposition of the Practice of Banking in Scotland. 
Lawson's History of Banking. Revised, with numerous additions, by 

J. Smith Homans. 
Francis' History of the Bank of England. 
Clarke's History of the Bank of the United States. 
Westminster Review, No. LXYIII, — Article IT. 

XXY 

ought the protective policy or free trade principles to 

PREVAIL? 

Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations. 

Foreign Quarterly Review, No. XXIX,— Article I. 

Bastiat's Sophisms of the Protective Policy. 

Raguet's Principles of Free Trade. 

London Quarterly Review, No. CXXXY, — Article VII. 

Rae's New Principles of Political Economy in Refutation of Adam 

Smith's Wealth of Nations. 
Blackwood's Magazine, No. CCCXLI, for March, 1844,— Article, 

" Corn Laws." 
Ricardo's Principles of Political Economy and Taxation. 
Wayland's Elements of Political Economy. 



QUESTIONS WITH REFERENCES. 211 

XXVI. 

IS THERE A POSSIBILITY OF REACHING- THE NORTH POLE? 

Encyclopedia Americana, — Article, " North Polar Expeditions." 

Barrow's Chronological History of Voyages into the Arctic Regions, 
from the Earliest Period to Captain Ross' Eirst Voyage. 

Ross' Arctic Voyages. 

Barrtngton's Possibility of Approaching the North Pole Asserted, 
with papers on the Northwest Passage, by Col. Beaufoy. 

Parry's Three Voyages for the Discovery of the North-West Passage. 

Sir John Franklin's Arctic Expeditions. 

Kane's Arctic Expedition. 

Arctic Regions, being an account of the Exploring Expeditions of 
Ross, Franklin, Parry, Back, M'Clure, and others, with the English 
and American Expeditions in search of Sir John Franklin (pub- 
lished by Miller, Orton, and Mulligan). 

XXVII. 

IS EMULATION A WHOLESOME STIMULANT IN EDUCATION? 

Hobbes on Envy and Emulation. 

Cowper's Tirocinium. 

Dwight's Decisions. 

Edgeworth's Practical Education. 

Godwin's Reflections on Education, Manners, and Literature. 

XXVHI. 

WAS THE EXECUTION OF MAJOR ANDRE JUSTIFIABLE? 

Encyclopedia Americana, — Article, " Benedict Arnold." 

Benson's Vindication of the Captors of Major Andre. 

Smith's Authentic Narrative of the Causes which led to the Death of 

Major Andre. 
Miss Seward's Monody on the Death of Major Andre. 

XXIX. 

HAS THE AUTHOR OF JUNIUS EVER BEEN IDENTIFIED? 

Encyclopedia Americana, — Article, " Junius." 
Britton's Authorship of the Letters of Junius Elucidated. 
Junius Identified with a Distinguished Living Character, (N. Y., 18] 8.) 
Junius Unmasked, or Lord Sackville proved to be the Author of 
Junius, (Boston, 1828.) 






212 QUESTIONS WITH REFERENCES. 

XXX. 1/ 

WOULD THE UNIVERSAL PREVALENCE OP SOCIALISM ADVANCE THE 
INTERESTS OF HUMANITY? 

Rousseau's Inquiry into the Social Contract. 
Fisher's Examination of Owen's New System of Society. 
Considerations of some Recent Social Theories (Boston, 1853). 
London Quarterly Review, No. CXXX, — Article VI. (On Socialism). 
Blackwood's Magazine, No. CCCXLIX., for November, 1844, — 
Article, " French Socialists." 

XXXI. 

ARE THE MODERNS SUPERIOR TO THE ANCIENTS IN RHETORICAL 
SCIENCE ? 

Aristotle's Rhetoric, translated by G-illles. 

Cicero De Oratore, translated by GTuthrie. 

Quinctilian's Institutes of Eloquence, translated by Guthrie. 

Longinus on the Sublime, translated by W. Smith. 

Dialogue on Eloquence, attributed to Tacitus, translated by Murphy. 

Horace De Arte Poetica, translated by P. Francis. 

Campbell's Philosophy of Rhetoric. 

Kames' Elements of Criticism. 

Whately's Rhetoric. 

XXXII. 

IS GENIUS INNATE? 

Brown's Lectures on the Philosophy of the Human Mind. 

Reid's Inquiry into the Human Mind. 

Locke on the Human Understanding. 

Sharpe's Dissertation on Genius. 

"Whipple's Lecture on Genius. 

Blair's Lectures on Rhetoric. 

XXXIII. 

IS THE STORY OP THE TROJAN WAR CREDIBLE? 

Thirw all's History of Greece. 

Le Chevalier's Description of the Plain of Troy. 

Bryant's Dissertation concerning the War of Troy. 

Chandler's History of Ilium, or Troy. 

Gell's Topography of Troy. 

Wood's Essay on the Genius and Writings of Homer. 



QUESTIONS WITH REFERENCES. 213 

XXXIY. 

ABE NEGROES INFERIOR TO WHITE PEOPLE IN MENTAL 
CAPACITY? 

Penny Cyclopedia, — Article, "Man." 

Gbegoire's Inquiry Concerning the Intellectual and Moral Faculties 

of Negroes. 
Brande's Dictionary of Science, Literature, and Art, — Article, 

" Negroes." 
Prichard's Researches into the Physical History of Mankind. 
Lawrence's Lectures on the Comparative Anatomy, Zoology, and the 

Natural History of Man. 
Combe's Constitution of Man Considered. 
Encyclopedia Americana, — Article, " Africa." 

XXXY. 

IS THE CHARACTER OF QUEEN ELIZABETH WORTHY TO BE 
ADMIRED? 

Hume's History of England 

Agnes Strickland's Queens of England. 

Sharon Turner's History of England during the Reign of Edward 

VI., Mary, and Elizabeth. 
Lucy Atktn's Memoirs of the Court of Queen Elizabeth. 
Abbott's Life of Elizabeth. 

XXXVI. 

IS THE STATEMENT, — " EVERY MAN IS THE ARCHITECT OF HIS OWN 
FORTUNE," TRUE? 

Davenport's Lives of Individuals who have raised themselves from 

Poverty to Eminence and Fortune. 
Edwards' Biography of Self-Taught Men. 
Mlddleton's Life of Cicero. 
Hugh Miller's My Schools and Schoolmasters. 
Pursuit of Knowledge under Difficulties, (published by the Harpers.) 
Boyhood of Great Men ; also, Footprints of Famous Men, (published 

by the Harpers.) 
Parton's Life of Horace Greeley. 
Carlyle's Review of Heeren's Life of Heyne, — Foreign Review, No. 

IV., 1828. 



214 QUESTIONS WITH REFERENCES. 

XXXVII ) / 

WAS THE HARTPOED CONTENTION JUSTIFIABLE? 

Dwight's History of the Hartford Convention. 
Otis' Letters in Defense of the Hartford Convention. 

XXXVIII 

ARE NOT THE VIRTUES OP THE PURITANS GENERALLY OVER-ESTIMATED ? 

Neal's History of the Puritans. 

G-rey's Examination of Neal on the Puritans. 

Madox's Vindication of the Church of England against Neal's History 

of the Puritans. 
Stoughton's Heroes of Puritan Times, with an Introductory Letter 

by Joel Hawes, D.D. 
Young's Chronicles of the Pilgrim Fathers. 

XXXIX. 

WAS THE EXECUTION OP CHARLES THE FIRST JUSTIFIABLE? 

Hume's History of England. 

Clarendon's History of the Rebellion. 

Guizot's History of the English Revolution in 1640, from the Acces- 
sion of Charles I. to his Death ; translated by W. Hazlitt. 

Hallam's Constitutional History of England ; also, Macaulay's Re- 
view of the same (in Modern British Essayists, Vol. I.) 

Abbott's History of Charles I. 

Lucy Aikin's Memoirs of the Court of King Charles I. 

Court and Times of Charles I. (London, 1848). 

Westminster Review, No. XLIII, ^Article II. 

XL. 

IS THE EARLY LEGEND OF ROMULUS AND THE FOUNDATION OP ROME 
ENTITLED TO CREDENCE? 

Plutarch's Life of Romulus. 
Penny Cyclopaedia, — Article, " Romulus." 

Anthon's Classical Dictionary,— Articles, " Roma" and " Rom- 
ulus." 
Abbott's Life of Romulus. 
Niebuhr's History of Rome. 
Arnold's History of Rome. 



SECTION XIII. 

MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION. 

I 1ST order to supply, in some degree, the demand for 
variety in the questions proper for discussion in 
Debating Societies, we append the following list, which 
contains, among many others, those, also, that have 
been used in the three sections preceding. 

1. Ought the State to provide for the free education of all children 
within its borders ? 

2. Is a life of celibacy preferable to that of the married state ? 

3. Ought old Bachelors to be subjected to civil disabilities ? 

4. Should monopolies in trade ever be allowed ? 

5. "Which yields the greater pleasure, anticipation or possession ? 

6. Is the maxim, "A poet is born such, not made," strictly true ? 
1. Ought ministers of the gospel to engage in party politics? 

8. Which life is subjected to the greater hardship, the soldier's or 
that of the sailor? 

9. Are the ancient Seres identical with the modern Chinese ? 

"^■" 10. Ought there to be a law of international copyright ? — 

11. Which contributes the more to eloquence, art or nature ? 

12. Ought the Protective Policy or Pree-Trade Principles to pre- 
vail? 

13. Which yields the higher entertainment, poetry or history? 

14. Is it expedient to form colonies of convicts ? 

15. Is universal suffrage expedient ? 

16. Is the doctrine of human perfectibility true? \ 



216 MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS. 

- 1*7. Can the immortality of the soul be proved from the light of 
nature alone ? 

18. Can a man who has been unjustly condemned to death, in- 
nocently withdraw himself from the hands of the law ? 

19. Ought gambling to be suppressed by law? 

20. Do men suffer more, in this life, from real than from imaginary 
evils ? 

21. Ought a breach of promise of marriage to be punished merely by 
pecuniary fines ? 

22. Which abounds the more in sublimity, ancient or modern 
poetry ? 

<■&«*. Which exercises the greater influence upon mankind, hope or 
fear? 

24. Which is the more serviceable to mankind, gold or iron ? 

25. Which is better for the development of character, poverty or 
riches ? 

26. Which is the better source of knowledge, reading or observa- 
tion? 

27. Ought the blacks of the free States to have the privilege of 
voting ? 

28. Is Eoman Catholicism compatible with free institutions? 

29. Would a repeal of the union between Ireland and England be 
beneficial to the former ? 

30. Would a large standing army be conducive to our country's 
prosperity ? 

31. Would a Congress of nations be practical or beneficial? 

32. Were the Puritans justified in their treatment of the North 
American Indians ? 

,33. Ought the liberty of the press to be restricted? 

34. Was the Mexican war justifiable ? 

35. Has the Negro more ground for complaint than the Indian ? 
• 36. Was the banishment of Roger Williams justifiable ? 

37. Was Governor Dorr's imprisonment justifiable ? 

38. Was the war between England and China justifiable on the 
part of England ? 

39. Is England likely ever to become a republic ? 

40. Is the Wilmot proviso constitutional ? 

41. Ought our government to favor the building of a Pacific railroad ? 

42. Was the intervention of the French at Rome just and ex- 
pedient? 



MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS. 217 

- 43. Ought imprisonment for debt to be abolished ? ~" 

44. Ought any foreign power to interfere in the affairs of Poland ? 

45. Ought religious institutions to be supported by law ? 

46. Were the Allied Powers justifiable in interfering in the affairs of 
Greece ? 

47. Was the field of eloquence among the ancients superior to that 
among the moderns ? 

48. Is Infidelity on the increase ? 

49. Is too high regard paid to antiquity ? 

50. Is there any limit to the progress of social improvement? 

51. Ought the support of the poor to be provided for by the govern- 
ment? 

52. Has the introduction of Christianity been unfavorable to poetry ? 
63. Ought the general government, or any state government, to 

compel all or any of the free blacks to remove to Liberia ? 

54. Are fictitious writings more beneficial than injurious ? 
- 55. Is assassination of tyrants justifiable ? 

56. Ought general govern*-- ents to be invested with more authority ? 

57. Have European commotions a tendency to promote liberty 

58. Ought Free-Masonry to be suppressed by law ? 

59. Is a public preferable to a private education ? 

60. Was the Hartford Convention justifiable ? 

61. Should the United States government have assisted in the 
emancipation of the Greeks ? 

62. Ought privateering to be allowed ? 

63. Ought lotteries to be tolerated ? 

64. Ought the Chief Magistrate of the Union to have the power to 
pardon criminals? 

65. Ought infidel publications to be prohibited by law? 

66. Are public executions preferable to private ? 

67. Ought a student to pursue professional studies, while in col- 
lege? 

68. Is rotation in office politic ? 

69. Do ghosts or spectres appear? 

70. Is it politic for Universities in the United States to import their 
professors ? 

71. Ought the United States to encourage the Indians, now within 
their own limits, to emigrate further west ? 

72. Has the British Government in India been beneficial to- the 
natives? 

10 



218 MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS. 

73. Have men of thought been more beneficial to the world than 
men of action ? 

74. Does the prevailing system of popular lectures in the principal 
cities of the country deserve our support ? 

75. Is the power of England beneficial to the world? 

76. Are the principles of the Peace Society worthy of our support? 

77. "Which was the greatest historian, Hume, G-ibbon, or Niebuhr? 

78. Should the course of study in academies and colleges be the 
same for all the pupils ? 

79. Is it expedient to unite manual with mental labor in an educa- 
tional establishment ? 

80. Are all mankind descended from one pair ? 

81. Is asceticism favorable to the development of Christian character ? 

82. Is it expedient to abolish the system of college commons? 

83. Is not the production of such a poem as the Iliad incompatible 
with the idea of the supposed general ignorance prevalent in Homer's 
time? 

84. Which is preferable, a sanguine, or a phlegmatic temperament ? 

85. Is childhood the happiest period of human life? 

86. "Were the Pelasgi and the Hellenes one in language and in 
origin ? 

87. Is not undue importance attached to precedents in our courts of 
law? 

88. Has history been improved by the rejection of fictitious ora- 
tions ? 

89. Which are the more praiseworthy, the Greek or the Eoman 
historians? 

90. Which was the greater poet, Milton or Homer? 

91. Is poetical genius greatly benefited by extensive reading? 

92. Is it unimportant what one's doctrines may be, so long as his 
life is in the right ? 

93. Are critical reviews advantageous to science and literature ? 

4 94. Which affords the better field for eloquence, the pulpit or the 
bar? 

95. Is it judicious to read on a given theme before we write upon it 
in full? 

96. Which exercises the greater influence on the character of the 
young, the teacher or the preacher ? 

97. Are the inequalities of rank and condition in society favorable to 
the advancement of learning ? 



MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS 219 

98. Should an author rest his fame on few or on many books ? 

99. Ought public opinion to be regarded as the standard of right ? 

100. Was Bonaparte greater in the field than in the cabinet? 

101. Is the savage state preferable to the civilized? 

102. Are lawyers beneficial ? 

103. Ought the Judiciary to be independent ? 

104. Does temptation lessen the baseness of crime ? 

105. Can the existence and attributes of the Deity be proved by 
the light of nature ? 

106. Are Negroes inferior to white people in mental capacity ? 

10*7. Is a promise to a highwayman, not to take measures for his de- 
tection on the condition of sparing one's life, binding ? 

108. Are women more revengeful than men ? 

109. Is a mind of acute sensibility, on the whole, desirable ? 

110. "Winch is the more conducive to the best interests of the State, 
commerce or agriculture ? 

111. Ought persons differing in religious sentiment to be united in 
marriage ? 

112. Ought a Christian to unite in marriage with an unbeliever ? 

113. Is immersion essential to the validity of Christian baptism ? 

114. Is the maxim, " No church without a bishop" true? 

115. Are the moderns superior to the ancients in poetry and 
eloquence ? 

116. Ought theological seminaries to be encouraged? 

11T. Is the assertion in the Declaration of Independence, " that all 
men are created equal" true ? 

118. Has the moral influence of the United States, on the whole, 
been salutary to the world ? 

119. Ought a man to pledge himself to total abstinence? 

120. Has a man a right to kill another in self-defense ? 

121. "Was the fate of Sir Walter Raleigh a deserved one? • 

122. Is the sentiment, — 

" For forms of government let fools contest; 
What 's best administered, is best," — 

justifiable. 

123. Which exhibits the greater wonders, the land or the sea? 

124. Ought human physiology to be a regular study in our com- 
mon schools? 

125 Is the doctrine of original sin taught in the Bible ? 



220 MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS. 

126. Has the Smithsonian Fund been employed in a manner accord- 
ant with the intention of the donor ? 

12V. "Would the universal prevalence of Socialism advance the in- 
terests of humanity ? 

128. Is morality separable from religion ? 

129. Ought normal schools to be supported by the State? 

130. Is there Scripture authority for a belief in the Second Advent, 
and personal reign of Christ on the earth ? 

131. Ought not a bank of the United States to be reestablished? 

132. Is not the practice of auricular confession enjoined in Scripture, 
and conducive to morality ? 

133. "Was the execution of the Due D'Enghien justifiable? 

134. "What were the origin and nature of the Eleusinian mysteries? 

135. Has any State of this Union a right of secession? 

136. Is intervention by one nation in the affairs of another ex- 
pedient ? 

131. Ought a parent, who can avoid it, ever to intrust the education 
of his child to persons not directly responsible to himself? 

138. Does morality keep pace with the progress of civilization ? 

139. Is sporting justifiable? 

140. Ought the United States Government to establish a national 
system of education? 

141. Is genius innate ? 

142. Which has done the greater service to the cause of truth, 
philosophy or poetry ? 

143. Is there ground to believe that the atrocity of Richard III. has 
been greatly overstated ? 

144. "Which was superior, Matilda, wife of "William the Conqueror, 
or Katharine, wife of Henry VIII. ? 

145. Are the confessions made by the Earl of Bothwell immediately 
before his death, relative to Lord Darnley's death, to be regarded as 
true? 

146. "What country at the present time is under the best govern- 
ment? 

14*7. "Was the execution of the Earl of Essex justifiable ? 

148. "Which is the greater discovery, that of the magnetio needle or 
the electric telegraph ? 

149. Did the writings of Junius exercise a beneficial influence 
upon the political condition of England ? 

150. Did the reign of G-eorge IV. prove beneficial to England ? 



i 



MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS. 221 

151. Ought the celebration of the birthdays of great men to be en- 
encouraged ? 

152. Which was the greater man, considered as a reformer, Peter, 
the G-reat, of Russia, or Henry Till, of England ? 

153. "Which is the most civilized and enlightened country of the 
present time ? 

154. "Were the American Indians the aborigines of this continent ? 

155. Is Mnemotechny beneficial ? 

156. Is the story of the Trojan war credible ? 

157. Is the cultivation of the Fine Arts always conducive to virtuous 
principle ? 

158. Have savages a full right to the soil? 

159. Are political improvements better effected by rulers than by the 
people ? 

160. Is the character of a nation affected by its climate? 

161. Ought representatives to be bound by the will of their con- 
stituents ? 

162. Is crime prevented or produced by our present system of 
prison discipline? 

163. Which is the superior historian, Thucydides or Tacitus? 

164. Ought witnesses to be held as prisoners ? 

165. Ought any portion of the earnings of a prisoner, during his con- 
finement, to be allowed him upon his release ? 

166. Ought jurors to be paid? 

167. Ought the sale of ardent spirits, for use as a beverage, to be 
prohibited by law ? 

168. Was the action of the United States government in affording 
protection to Martin Koszta justifiable and expedient ? 

169. Is it not equally the interest of the poor and the rich to prevent 
exorbitant taxation ? 

170. Who is the hero of Paradise Lost? 

171. Is card-playing a safe and justifiable amusement? 

172. Ought suicide to be taken as evidence of courage, or of 
cowardice ? 

173. Was the execution of Major Andre justifiable ? 

174. Which is the better guaranty of success in the world, tact or 
talent? 

175. Has more good than evil resulted to the world from the life 
and religion ot Mahomet ? 

176. Which is the more advantageous to a country, coal mines or 
gold mines ? 



222 MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS. 

177. Has the favor shown to great statesmen in this country been 
such as to encourage young men of talent to qualify themselves 
thoro. iiyfor high political position ? 

178. jJ>s sectarianism done more to advance than to retard the 
interests of Christianity? 

119. "Which is the more useful in society, the farmer or the mechanic ? 

180. Are the masses governed more by fashion than by reason? 

181. Is the sentiment, " Whatever is, is right, 11 a just one? 

182. Will the Know Nothings exert a favorable influence upon the 
institutions of our country ? 

183. Is it a wise policy to deal with our friends as though they 
might become our enemies ? 

184. Is there such a quality as disinterestedness? 

185. Is the maxim, " Our country, right or wrong, 11 a justifiable 
one? 

186. Do present appearances indicate the overthrow of the British 
empire ? 

187. Ought not flagrant ingratitude to be a penal offense ? 

188. Ought Patent-Rights to be granted? 

189. Does the present state of society in Europe portend the 
establishment of republican forms of government? 

X90. Ought parochial schools to be encouraged ? 

191. Lo~? artue always insure happiness ?jW • 

192. 2s> <he insertion, " A little learning is a dangerous thing, 11 true? 

193. Which do me: a naturally prefer, truth or error ? 

194. Was the last war of the TJnited. States with England justifiable ? 

195. Which does society most injury, the slanderer, the robber, or 
the murderer? 

196. Did the career of Napoleon Bonaparte produce more good than 
evil results ? 

197. Is it ever advisable to act from policy rather than from principle ? 

198. Does iveaUh exert more influence than knowledge? 

199. Ought circumstantial evidence to be admitted in criminal cases? 

200. Is a Republican form of government favorable to the cultivation 
of literature and science ? 

201. Which yields the higher mental enjoyment, fact or fiction? 

" ° Is u t> " ^"nYsii language . likely ever to be universally. prevalent ? 
2uc '- - Sre \ " "" a prop-erty qualification to entitle one to hold 
a political offtc- ' 



MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS. 223 

204. Ought the right of suffrage to he dependent upon any property 
qualification ? 

205. May an oath, taken under circumstances of stress or deception, 
be violated without guilt ? 

206. Ought man to be confined to an exclusively vegetable diet? 
201. Does the Bible prohibit judicial oaths? 

208. Is pride commendable ? 

209. Ought the Missouri Compromise to have been abrogated? 

210. Which is worse, a lad education, or no education? 

211. Is any government as important and sacred as the principles 
which it is established to protect ? 

212. Are banks more beneficial than injurious to a community? 

213. "Which is preferable, genius without application, or application 
without genius ? 

214. Ought military schools to be encouraged? 

215. Does not a written political constitution serve rather to hinder 
than to aid in securing the objects contemplated in its formation ? 

216. Have Byron's works an immoral tendency ? 

217. Did the French Bevolution aid the cause of liberty in Europe ? 

218. Ought the private property of stockholders to be holden for the 
debts of a bank ? 

219. Would the peaceful cession of the Canadas to the United States 
be mutually beneficial to our own government and Great Britain ? 

220. Ought a judge to be influenced by the former character of a 
criminal ? 

221. Has Spain received any material benefit from her colonies? 

222. Were the Olympic and other ancient games beneficial? 

223. Ought public men, on retiring from office, in this country, to be 
pensioned ? 

224. Is the present general mode of celebrating the Fourth of July 
beneficial to the country ? 

225. Are different grades, or classes in society, inseparable from the 
present social system ? 

226. Would it be a wise policy for the United States to establish a 
large and powerful navy ? 

227. Should Universities be under the control of the State ? 

228. Is English aristocracy of birth likely to continue a polujcal force ? 

229. Are rents the causes of the high price of produce ? 

230. Must the price of agricultural products rise with increase of 
wealth and population ? 



224 MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS. 

231. Can there be a general over-production of commodities? 

232. Is there any real danger of over-population? •— « 

233. Do our institutions demand profound statesmen? 

234. Can any government be kept from oppression ? 

235. Ought the man who kills his antagonist in a duel to be pun- 
ished as a murderer ? 

236. Can a knowledge of human nature, in general, and of individ- 
ual character in particular, be best derived from the study of history ? 

231. Are the United States under deeper obligations to her warriors 
than to her statesmen ? 

238. Is prosperity favorable to the morals of a nation? 

239. Which afford the better opportunities for personal advancement, 
politics or literature ? 

240. Which has proved the more useful to mankind, the invention 
of the mariner's compass or the application of steam to navigation ? 

241. Which is the most powerful stimulant to exertion, emulation, 
patronage, or personal necessity ? 

242. Would a division of the Union be beneficial ? 

243. Is labor a blessing or a curse ? 

244. Ought anonymous publications to be suppressed by law ? 

245. Ought the surplus revenues to be distributed by Congress for 
the prosecution of internal improvements ? 

246. Were the revolutions which took place in France, between the 
execution of Louis XYI. and the final restoration of Louis XVIII., 
beneficial to that country ? 

247. Do the signs of the times indicate a subversion of our govern- 
ment? 

248. Ought a military spirit to be encouraged in a country ? 

249. Were the principles of the Jefiersonian administration bene- 
ficial to the country ? 

250. Ought the rate of interest on money to be regulated by law? 

251. Are national celebrations beneficial? 

252. Ought there to be in this country an order of men devoted ex- 
clusively to literature ? 

253. Are voluntary associations for the promotion of moral principles 
beneficial ? 

254. Is a State Legislature justifiable in violating its contracts ? 

255. Have the administrations of our country pursued a correct 
policy in relation to the Indians ? 

256. Is man accountable for his opinions ? 



MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS. 225 

25*7. Ought a militiary chieftain to be the chief civil magistrate of a 
free people ? 

258. Ought infidels to be admitted to public office ? 

259. Is direct taxation preferable to indirect ? 

260. Ought Parliament to interfere with the revenues of the Eng- 
lish Church? 

261. "Which was the more acute and profound thinker, John C. Cal- 
houn or Daniel Webster ? 

262. Ought juries to be judges of the law as well as of the fact ? 

263. Ought clergymen to be excluded from civil offices by law ? 

264. Is the system of paper currency safe ? 

265. Ought a President of the United States to be eligible a second 
time to office ? 

266. Is difference of talent owing chiefly to nature or circumstances? 

267. Are the rights of women duly regarded in the present consti- 
tution of society ? 

268. Is expediency the foundation of right ? 

269. Which has the greater influence in the foundation of national 
character, physical or moral causes ? 

270. Ought government to indemnify individuals for damages done 
by mobs ? 

. — -271. Ought an infidel to be allowed to testify in a court of justice ? 

272. Ought a horse, or other beast of burden, when unable, by age 
or otherwise, to labor, to be killed, or turned out to die ? 

273. Is the maxim, " Better that ten guilty persons should escape than 
that one innocent man should suffer •," on the whole just and true? 

274. Is there more of happiness than misery in human life? 

275. Are tea and coffee, as beverages, injurious ? 

276. Ought the reading of the Bible, as a religious exercise, to be 
forbidden or neglected in our common schools ? 

277. Which is the more desirable, a state of liberty without prop- 
erty, or a state of property without liberty ? 

278. Is not the giving of military command to persons who have 
never seen service, a discouragement to the army ? 

279. Is the law of primogeniture just and expedient? 

280. Is mere refinement of manners conducive to virtue ? 

281. Which is the more likely to procure general estimation, the 
reality of virtue or the appearance of it ? 

282. Ought foreign emigration to be encouraged ? 

283. Does the mind always think ? 

10* 






226 MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS. 

284. Is the glory of a victory, as a general thing, due more to the 
skill of the commander than to the bravery of the soldiers ? 

285. Is a lie ever justifiable ? 

286. Is animal magnetism altogether supernatural in its nature and 
operation, or is it a science founded upon natural laws ? 

28*7. Ought religious tests to be required of civil officers ? 

288. Ought the education of males and females to be similar in de- 
gree and kind ? 

289. Ought females to learn and practice the art of public speak- 
ing? 

290. Ought the Bible to be employed as an ordinary reading book 
in schools ? 

291. Had the celebrated apologue, entitled "Reynard, the Fox," 
an exclusively political aim.* 

292. Were the ancient oracles due to supernatural agency ? 

293. Is homeopathy worthy of confidence ? 

294. Ought eloquence to be studied as an art? 

295. Is the doctrine of non-resistance sound? 

296. "Would the extinction of the Ottoman empire result in benefit 
to Europe? 

297. Was the Roman conquest beneficial to Britain ? 

298. Were the institutions of chivalry beneficial to mankind ? 

299. Were the first settlers of this country justifiable in taking forc- 
ible possession of the country ? 

300. Which furnishes the most interesting subjects of investigation, 
the mineral, the animal, or the vegetable kingdom ? 

301. Are differences of character attributable more to physical than 
to moral causes ? 

302. Is the preservation of the balance of power in Europe a justi- 
fiable cause of war ? 

303. Does the present aspect of affairs in Europe give pledge or 
prospect of the speedy establishment of genuine liberty in that quarter 
of the world ? 

304. Is the charge of ingratitude, so often brought against Republics, 
founded in truth ? 

305. Which did the greater service to mankind, Columbus or Sir 
Isaac Newton ? 

306. Would a general European war be beneficial to the interests 
of this country ? 

* See, on this question, the " Foreign Quarterly Review," No. XXXIV., Art. III. 



MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS. 227 

3 Of. Has the restoration of Greece to political independence been 
on the whole beneficial ? 

308. Has the introduction of machinery been, on the whole, bene- 
ficial to the laboring classes ? 

309. Is transportation a justifiable mode of punishment ? 

310. Was the ostracism, practiced in ancient Athens, justifiable ? 

311. "Which is the more pernicious character, the slanderer or the 
flatterer ? 

312. Is the system of hydropathy, or water-cure, entitled to confidence? 

313. Is the attention paid to politics by all classes favorable to 
patriotism ? 

314. Is not refinement, according to the notions of the present day, 
unfavorable to happiness ? 

315. Does nature teach the doctrine or notion of a plurality of 
Deities ? 

316. Does the existence of different religious denominations tend to 
advance or to retard the cause of Christ ? 

31*7. Should a man ever praise his own work? 

318. Is the doctrine of innate ideas founded in truth? 

319. Should the truth always be spoken? 

320. "Which gives the better insight into human nature, reading or 
observation ? 

321. "Which afford the better field for the display of origkality, the 
Eine or the Useful Arts ? 

322. "Which is the more interesting and instructive, G-recan or 
Roman history ? 

323. Which is the more valuable, physical or moral courage ? 
324 Ought secret societies to be tolerated? 

325. Would any further extension of the Union be politic? 

326. Has Christianity been a temporal as well as a spiritual blessing 
to the world ? 

327. Is the temporal essential to the spiritual jurisdiction of the Pope ? 

328. Ought a man to marry his deceased wife's sister ? 

329. Can the immortality of the soul be proved from the fight of 
nature ? 

330. Ought a representative always to be an inhabitant of the town 
or district represented ? 

331. Which is preferable, city or country life ? 

332. Is resistance to the constituted authorities in the State ever 
justifiable ? 



228 MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS. 

333. Ought emulation in schools to be encouraged ? 

334. "Which is the more conducive to the cultivation of literature, a 
monarchical or a republican form of government ? 

335. Has a man a right to expatriate himself? 

336. Is teaching a profession in the same sense, that law, medicine 
and theology are professions ? 

337. Is Madison more deserving our estimation than Hamilton? 

338. Is dueling ever justifiable ? 

339. Ought theatres to be abolished? 

340. "Which is preferable, anarchy or despotism ? 

341. Is the American Colonization Society worthy of national support? 

342. Can the North Pole be reached by navigation ? 

343. "Would the acquisition of Cuba by the United States be bene- 
ficial to the latter ? 

344. Is it possible to determine the true nature and origin of meteors ? 

345. Is the natural state of man, as asserted by Hobbes, a state of 
war? 

346. "Was Cicero greater as an orator than as a philosopher ? 

34:1. Is the habitual use of tobacco for chewing and smoking injuri- 
ous to health ? 

348. Is the doctrine of endless punishment taught in the Bible ? 

349. Has Junius ever been identified ? 

350. Have we anything to fear from the spread of Popery ? 

351. "Was the Atlantis of the ancients identical with the continent 
of America ? 

352. Is corporal punishment necessary in the schools ? 

353. Should a boy be taught those things only which he is likely to 
need in practical life when a man ? 

354. Ought not Sunday-schools, in which the Bible is taught without 
reference to sectarian differences, to be supported by the public funds ? 

355. Are the ideas of the mind separate from the mind itself? 

356. Is it wise in a parent to labor to amass money in order to leave 
a rich inheritance to his children ? 

35*7. Is there sufficient ground for the belief, that the career of Joan 
of Arc was due to supernatural agency ? 

358. Is the character of Aaron Burr justly estimated ? 

359. Can utility be considered as a safe moral guide ? 

360. Do modern biographies generally give a fair insight into human 
character ? 

361. "Was "Warren Hastings' conduct in India justifiable ? 



MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS. 229 

362. Are short terms of political office desirable? 

363. Which is the most prolific source of crime, poverty, wealth, or 
ignorance ? 

364. Which is superior, as an intellectual gymnastic, a classical or a 
mathematical education ? 

^^365. Is capital punishment justifiable ? 

366. Should the main end of punishment be the reformation of the 
criminal or the prevention of crime ? 

36*7. Which furnishes the better safeguard against crime, the jail or 
the school? 

368. Which is the better government, a limited monarchy or a re- 
public ? 

369. Is true eloquence the gift of nature or of art ? 

370. Which is the more extensively useful, fire or water? 

371. Is it ever right to marry for money ? 

372. Ought our country to establish and endow a national uni- 
versity ? 

373. Is it expedient to wear mourning apparel? 

374. Which is the stronger inducement to the study of history, the 
love of truth, or mere curiosity ? 

375. Has the study of mythology an immoral tendency ? 

376. Which did the greater mischief, Mahomet or Constantine? 

377. Is there any necessary connection between genius and eccen- 
tricity ? 

378. Have not the defenses of Christianity been rather strengthened 
than weakened by the assaults of infidelity ? 

379. Ought a man to be influenced in respect to the fashion of his 
apparel by a regard to the opinions or practice of others ? 

380. Would the public morals be injured by the non-observance of 
the Christian Sabbath ? 

381. Ought truth ever to be withheld on the ground, that the world 
is not prepared to receive it ? 

382. Is it expedient to make authorship a business or profession ? 

383. Is the judgment of conscience always correct ? 

384. Which is the more disadvantageous, credulity or skepticism ? 

385. Which gives the more clear and forcible ideas of scenes and 
actions, the poet or the painter ? 

386. Which is the more selfish person, the miser or the profligate? 

387. Ought one ever to advocate or defend what he believes to be false ? 

388. Ought persons of foreign birth to be allowed the right of suffrage ? 



230 MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS. 

389. Ought government officers to be confined exclusively to native 
citizens ? 

390. Have Sir Walter Scott's writings been beneficial in their in- 
fluence ? 

391. Is the system of American slavery more odious and unjust 
than Eussian serfdom? 

392. Which offers the better field for the cultivation of eloquence, 
the bar or the pulpit ? 

393. Is the law an honorable profession ? 

394. Ought public school-money to be appropriated exclusively to 
common schools ? 

395. Does proselytism favor the cause of truth ? 

396. Should military achievements influence the election of Presi- 
dent of the United States of America ? 

397. "Would the suppression of civil and religious liberty in Europe 
have a tendency to destroy our own ? 

398. Is the maxim, "Everyman is the architect of his own fortune " 
true? 

399. Is war ever justifiable ? 

400. Should letters of marque and reprisal be granted? 

401. Is the advancement of civil liberty indebted more to intellect- 
ual culture than to physical suffering ? 

402. Is nature alone sufficient to teach man his duty to G-od ? 

403. Which has caused more evil, ambition or intemperance ? 

404. Does not the persecution of any principle or party tend more to 
its advancement than the works of its own supporters ? 

405. Are any of the so-called spiritual manifestations of the present 
day properly referable to the agency of departed spirits ? 

406. Is the supply of coal from the mines likely always to be equal 
to the wants of the world ? 

407. Ought the aim of education to be the harmonious development 
of all its powers, or the special training of individual faculties ? 

408. Has popular superstition a favorable influence on the literature 
of a nation ? 

409. In the present European struggle has the true spirit of human 
freedom been manifested ? 

410. Was the political career of Oliver Cromwell beneficial to Great 
Britain ? 

411. Is our country in more danger from external factions than from 
internal foes ? 



MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS. 231 

412. Was the claim of Texas upon New Mexico invalid ? 

413. Is the inebriate accountable to God for the crimes he commits 
while intoxicated ? 

414. Which is the more effective in government, force or persuasion ? 

415. Have false systems of religion caused more misery than false 
systems of government ? 

416. Would an intuitive knowledge of all we are capable of com- 
prehending, contribute to increase our happiness beyond that of our 
present state ? 

41 Y. Would an equalization of property conduce to the happiness 
of society? 

418. Is not the rank held by women in a community the best test 
of the morals of that community ? 

419. Is the Union likely to be perpetual ? 

420. Will republicanism eventually supersede all other forms of 
government ? 

421. Has the enthronement of Napoleon III. benefited France ? 

422. Ought the French and English to have joined the Turks against 
Eussia ? 

423. Have we reason to conclude that other planets than our own 
are inhabited ? 

424. Are the Indians generally capable of being civilized ? 

425. Will African slavery be perpetual in the United States ? 

426. Ought Free-Masonry to be responsible for the murder of 
Morgan ? 

42 1. Is a Eeciprocity Treaty between the United States and Canada 
desirable ? 

428. Is the popularity of a literary production a sure test of its merit ? 

429. Is human life capable of any essential prolongation by human 
means ? 

430. Is the literature of a nation affected by its form of government ? 

431. Is the system of internal improvements politic? 

432. Is the reasoning indicated in the famous aphorism of Descartes, 
" Gogito, ergo sum," (I think, therefore I exist,) conclusive? 

433. Is there evidence sufficient, apart from the Bible, to prove the 
existence, at some former.period, of a universal deluge ? 

434. Was the execution of Charles I. justifiable ? 

435. Should the United States undertake to control the political 
movements of this continent ? 

436. Is modern equal to ancient patriotism? 



232 MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS. 

43 f. Which is preferable, moral or physical courage? 

438. Are debating societies beneficial ? 

439. Ought the Lancasterian system of teaching to be encouraged? 

440. Ought the President of the United States to be invested with 
the veto power ? 

441. Are the educated classes more virtuous, on the whole, than the 
ignorant? 

442. Are there any signs of decay in poetry and art ? 

443. Does the eighteenth century deserve the eulogium pronounced 
upon it by Gruizot ? 

444. Is there any great advantage in indirect elections ? 

445. Is language a human invention ? 

446. Ought the quantity of land held by one person to be limited ? 
44*7. Is the literary inferiority of the American nation owing to its 

infancy? 

, 448. Ought unanimity to be required that the verdict of a jury may 
have force? 

449. Could England maintain her present superiority without an 
aristocratic class ? 

450. Ought civilization to be propagated by force ? 

451. Is the United States in danger from an aristocratic class? 

452. Can republican forms of government exist without public virtue ? 

453. Ought Congress to prohibit carrying and distributing the mail 
on Sunday ? 

454. "Was the American revolution justifiable on moral grounds ? 

455. Are the crimes among barbarians more numerous or more 
heinous, as a general thing, than those among civilized men ? 

456. Is a lawyer justifiable in defending a person whom he knows 
to be guilty? 

45*7. Was Brutus justifiable in taking part with the conspirators 
against Caesar? 

458. Ought a republican government to tolerate all religious denomi- 
nations ? 

459. Were O'Connel and those indicted with him justly convicted ? 

460. Ought a student in college to direct his studies with reference 
to a particular profession ? 

461. Was Swedenborg mistaken in the belief, that he was admitted 
into intefbourse with the invisible world ? 

462. Should monuments be erected to the illustrious dead? 

463. Is liberty one of man's rights ? 



MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS. 233 

464. Have pride and ambition caused more evil than ignorance and 
superstition ? 

465. Are American churches the bulwark of liberty ? 

466. Does spirituous liquor cause more evil than money? 

467. Is man governed more by moral than by civil laws ? 

468. Would a universal language be desirable ? 

469. Has light reading or social intercourse the better effect in pre- 
paring one for usefulness ? 

470. Which is the more prolific source of enjoyment, memory or 
imagination ? 

471. Which have conferred the higher benefit on their country, the 
poets or prose writers of England ? 

472. Is the doctrine of ministerial parity fairly deducible from the 
Bible? 

473. Are the poetical parts of the Bible, considered merely as literary 
productions, inferior to the poems of Homer or Milton ? 

474. Is poverty oftener the result of misfortune than of mismanage- 
ment? 

475. Which exerts the greater influence on the happiness of man- 
kind, the male or the female mind ? 

476. Have the lost tribes of Israel ever been discovered? 
,•—477. Ought mixed schools* to be encouraged? 

478. Has not fashion a tendency to pervert the judgment? 

479. Should parties be compelled to give evidence in civil cases ? 

480. Ought the robbery of the grave to be punished as felony ? 

481. Was the reign of Henry VIII. advantageous to the liberties of 
England ? 

482. Was the death of Caesar beneficial to Rome ? 

483. Ought Coriolanus to have made war against his country ? 

484. Was the feudal system beneficial ? 

485. Is alcohol, considered in respect to all its various uses, more in- 
jurious than beneficial to mankind ? 

486. Was the Roman conquest beneficial to Britain? 

487. Was the monastic system beneficial to the interests of science ? 

488. Were the institutions of chivalry beneficial to mankind? 

489. Would Regulus have been justified in not returning to Car- 
thage? 

490. Does civilization tend to abolish military ambition?^ 

* That is, schools wherein males and females are tanght together in the same 
classes. 



234 MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS. 

491. Are the present facilities of intercourse between Europe and 
the United States favorable to the latter ? 

492. Which is the greater deprivation, loss of sight or loss of hearing? 

493. Is the designation, u Irr Habile genus"* so often applied to au- 
thors, just. 

494. Is there any authoritative standard of taste ? 

495. Do modern discoveries in geological science serve to confirm 
or weaken our faith in the Mosaic account of the creation ? 

496. "Was the execution of Mary Queen of Scots justifiable? 
491. Can there be a virtuous ambition? 

498. Ought children be compelled to attend school, at certain hours, 
by force of law ? 

499. Ought street beggary to be tolerated ? 

500. Which is the more useful member of the community, the lawyer 
or the clergyman ? 

501. Which is the most serviceable to mankind, the farmer, the me- 
chanic, or the merchant ? 

502. Ought a teacher of youth to be himself a parent? 

503. Are brutes endowed with reason ? 

504. Is the spendthrift more injurious to society than the miser? 

505. Has the invention of gunpowder proved more useful than hurt- 
ful to mankind ? 

506. Which is the meaner character, the liar or the hypocrite ? 

507. Which was the greatest general, Alexander, Hannibal, or 
Napoleon ? 

508. Ought the colonization of the African race to be encouraged ? 

509. Ought the election of President and Vice-President to be taken 
entirely from the Senate and House ? 

510. Ought the national government to make appropriations for in- 
ternal improvements ? 

511. Are the moderns superior to the ancients in rhetorical science ? 

512. Would the peaceable accession of the Canadas be beneficial to 
the United States ? 

513. Had the allied powers a right to place a king over Greece ? 

514. Which is the more serviceable to his country, the statesman or 
the warrior ? 

515. Does morality advance equally with civilization ? 

516. Is universal peace probable ? 

511. Which was the greater orator, Demosthenes or Cicero? 
* An irascible race. 



MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS. 235 

518. Is military glory a just object of ambition? 

519. "Which was the more powerful agency in producing the French 
revolution, the tyranny of the government or the excesses of the priests 
and nobles ? 

520. Are not popular superstitions favorable to the growth of poetry ? 

521. Is there sufficient ground for a belief in the alleged deteriora- 
tion of animals and vegetables in America ? 

522. Are not the public, in this country, generally deprived of the 
official services of our best men, by the reckless abuse of the press 
during election times ? 

523. Ought the Catholics to have a separate school fund? 

524. "Was Cromwell a patriot ? 

525. "Was Napoleon's banishment to St. Helena justifiable ? 

526. Ought a representative to be bound by the will of his con- 
stituents ? ■ 

527. Should government prohibit private mails ? 

528. Is it probable a republican government will he the prevailing 
one in the world ? 

529. "Were circumstances in past ages as favorable to the growth of 
literature as they are at present ? 

530. Should the present popularity of a literary work be taken as 
an index of its real merits ? 

-"531. Ought a college or university to be located in the city or in the 
country ? 

532. Ought a man to propose himself for a public office and advo- 
cate his own claims to preferment ? 

533. Is Puseyism compatible with Protestantism ? 

534. Is man a free moral agent? 

535. Has the love of money more influence upon mankind than edu- 
cation ? 

536. Should the laws of justice ever be turned aside to favor the 
cause of humanity ? 

53 1. "Was the late United-States Japan expedition a just one ? 

538. Does not a multiplicity of books rather clog than deepen the 
channels of learning ? 

539. Is the character of Jefferson worthy of admiration? 

540. "Was the execution of Lady Jane Grey justifiable ? 

541. Was it not the purpose of Shakspeare to delineate, in the con- 
duct of Desdemona, a character really indelicate and even unnatural, 
though apparently noble, refined, and every way commendable ? 



236 MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS. 

542. "Was there a greater field for eloquence in ancient than in 
modern times ? 

543. Was the bankrupt law justifiable ? 

544. Are our liberties more endangered by aristocracy than de- 
mocracy ? 

545. "Were the crusades beneficial ? 

546. Is party spirit beneficial to a country ? 

54*7 . Is a fugitive slave justified in taking the property of others to 
aid his escape ? 

548. Is offensive war justifiable in any case ? 

549. Has the discovery of the New "World benefited mankind ? 

550. Are newspapers beneficial to the community at large? 

551. Does the turpitude of a crime consist wholly in the intention? 

552. Are populous cities beneficial to a country? 

553. Is there reason to believe that the sages and philosophers of 
antiquity secretly discredited the popular religious systems of their day ? 

554. Is Pope's "Essay on Man" justly chargeable with an infidel 
tendency ? 

555. Ought universal suffrage to be allowed ? 

556. Ought ambition to be used as a motive for educating youth? 

557. "Was the conquest of Granada by Ferdinand and Isabella justi- 
fiable ? 

558. Is Hogarth's theory, respecting the fundamental source, or 
principle of beauty, correct ? 

559. "Was Kossuth justifiable in resigning his post as governor of 
Hungary into the hands of G-orgy, and in fleeing his country ? 

560. Is the practice of reciting the speeches of others, as an exer- 
cise in elocution, on the whole, beneficial ? 

561. Is it really a measure of prudence to issue what are termed 
" expurgated editions of the classics'?" 

562. Does universal suffrage lead men to value electoral rights ? 

563. "Which is the more useful to society, intellectual or physical 
labor? 

564. Can we profit more by the excellences than by the defects of 
others ? 

565. Is the character of Archbishop Laud, generally, justly esti- 
mated ? 

566. "Which is the more effective external means of securing favor, 
dress or address ? 

567. "Which is the more destructive element, fire or water ? 



MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS. 237 

668. Can any process of reasoning take place in the mind, without 
the aid of language, orally or mentally ? 

569. Had the ancients more virtue than the moderns ? 
670. Is prejudice a sin ? 

571. Is there more to approve than condemn in the character of 
Oliver Cromwell ? 

572. Which has been the more serviceable to mankind, the printing- 
press or the steam-engine ? 

573. Is the maxim, " Where (here's a will, there's a way," always 
true? 

574. Would it be of advantage to fix the rate of wages by law ? 

575. Is there an absolute standard of honor, as of right ? 

576. Is the maxim, that " Men should surrender some of their rights" 
safe and just ? 

577. Do democratic institutions promote a desirable form of manners 
and character ? 

578. Are there more worlds than ono ? 

579. Are early marriages conducive to the well-being of society ? 

580. Is it a wise policy for Americans to send their children into 
foreign countries to be educated ? 

581. Ought the right of church property to be vested exclusively in 
Bishops or any other ecclesiastical dignitaries ? 

582. Which of the lower animals is the most useful to mankind ? 



SECTION XIV. 

FORMS OF A CONSTITUTION AND BY-LAWS SUITABLE 
FOR A LITERARY OR DEBATING SOCIETY. 

TT being one of the first duties, upon the formation 
-*- of a Literary or Debating Society, to provide a sys- 
tem of rules and regulations, whereby the objects of 
the society may be more certainly secured, it is cus- 
tomary, for that purpose, to appoint a committee to 
draft a suitable constitution, as also such by-laws as 
may seem expedient. 

In so doing, it is convenient and useful to have at 
hand forms which have already been submitted to the 
test of experience ; for these serve as guides in ascer- 
taining what has elsewhere, under the like circum- 
stances, been found necessary or desirable. 

And, although every essential aid, perhaps, in cases 
of this kind, might be found in that part of the present 
work* which treats of the Eules of Order in Delibera- 
tive Assemblies, still, that nothing, in this regard, may 
be wanting, we present, in this Section, literal copies 
of the constitutions and by-laws of two societies now 
in successful operation. Of course, they are not given 
as models to be implicitly followed, but as forms to be 
altered, modified, and adapted to circumstances. It is 
wisdom to avail ourselves of the experience of others. 
* Sections IV. and V. 



AND BY-LAWS* 

OP THE 

YOUNG ME N'S 
AMERICAN SOCIAL AND DEBATING CLUB 

OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 



PREAMBLE 



Wheeeas it is necessary, in order to fit ourselves 
for the varied duties of life, to cultivate a correct mode 
of speaking, and to qualify ourselves, by practice, to 
express our opinions in public, in a correct manner ; 
and, whereas the extension of our information upon 
all subjects calculated to improve the mind, is highly 
commendable, and, as experience has abundantly 
proved that these ends can in no other way be so 
speedily accomplished as by forming a Club for such 
a purpose; therefore, we, the undersigned, have or- 
ganized a Club, and have adopted for our government 
the following Constitution, By-Laws, Rules and Regu- 
tions. 

* We give, as before said, literal copies of these constitutions and 
by-laws : not feeling at liberty to alter either their language or 
their provisions, however much we might wish them, in some par- 
ticulars, to be otherwise. 



240 FORMS OF A CONSTITUTION 



CONSTITUTION. 



ARTICLE I. 

NAME. 

This Club shall be known as the Young Men's 
American Social and Debating Club of the City 
of New- York. 

ARTICLE II. 

OBJECTS. 

The objects of this Club shall be the improvement 
of all connected with it, in debating, social advance- 
ment, and general literature. All questions bordering 
on immorality, or sectarian, shall be excluded. 

ARTICLE III. 

MEMBERSHIP. 

Clause 1. — None other than Americans, over the 
age of fifteen, and under the age of twenty -five, are 
eligible for membership. 

Clause 2. — Persons of any age may be elected Hon- 
orary Members of this Club, by a unanimous ballot ; 
but they shall not be entitled to hold office, nor to vote. 

ARTICLE IV. 

OFFICERS. 

The officers of this Club shall consist of a Presi- 
dent, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer, all of 
whom shall be voted for, separately, by ballot. 



ii 



h, 



FOE A LITERARY OR DEBATING SOCIETY. 241 
ARTICLE V. 

DUTIES OF PRESIDENT. 

It shall be the duty of the President to preside at 
all meetings of the Club, and enforce a rigid observ- 
ance of the Constitution, By-Laws, Rules and Regula- 
tions of the Club ; appoint all Committees, unless 
otherwise ordered : see that the officers perform their 
respective duties ; inspect and announce the result of 
all ballotings, or other votes ; in all cases of balloting 
he shall be permitted to vote ; in other cases he shall 
not vote, except in case of a tie, when he shall give 
the casting vote : in balloting, if there should be a tie 
twice in succession, he shall then give the casting vote 
except in case of election of officers ; he shall neither 
make nor second any motion, neither shall he take 
part in any debate while in the chair ; to draw upon 
the Treasurer for all sums that may have been voted 
for; and to have a general superintendence of the 
business of the Club. 

ARTICLE VI. 

DUTIES OF VICE-PRESIDENT. 

It shall be the duty of the Vice-President to preside 
in the absence of the President, and perform the du- 
ties of that officer. 

ARTICLE VII. 

DUTIES OF SECRETARY. 

It shall be the duty of the Secretary to keep the 
minutes of the Club, notify candidates of their elec- 
'"tion, register the names of the members, issue all no- 
il 



242 FOEMS OF A CONSTITUTION 

tices required, and perform such other duties pertaining 
to his office as may be required of him by the Club. 
At the first meeting in every month, he shall present 
a written report of the state of the Club ; and its 
doings during the past month. 

ARTICLE VIII. 

DUTIES OF TREASURER. 

It shall be the duty of the Treasurer to take care 
of all moneys and property belonging to the Club, 
and keep a written account of all moneys received or 
expended ; and, at the first meeting in every month, 
present a written report of the financial condition of 
the Club. 

ARTICLE IX. 

ELECTION OP OFFICERS. 

Clause l.< — All the officers of this Club shall be 
elected by ballot to serve a term of foua? months. 

Clause 2. — They shall be elected at the first regular 
meeting in January, May and September, and installed 
on the first regular meeting succeeding their election. 

Clause 3. — No person can be elected to an office, 
until he has been a member of this Club one month. 

Clause 4. — A majority of all legal votes cast shall 
be necessary to a choice. 

ARTICLE X. 

REMOVALS FROM OFFICE. 

Clause 1. — Should any officer or member of a com- 
mittee neglect or be found incompetent to discharge the 



FOB A LITEEAEY OR DEBATING SOCIETY. 243 

duties of his office, he may be removed by a vote of 
three fourths of the members present. 

Clause 2. All places of absentees in committees may 
be filled by said committees. 

ARTICLE XI. 

AMENDM E NTS. 

No addition, alteration or amendment can be made 
to this Constitution — neither can any part of it be re- 
pealed, without a two-third vote of the Club, and one 
month's previous notice! 



BY-LAWS. 



ARTICLE I. 

MEETINGS. 

Sec. 1. — This Club shall assemble on the first and 
third Wednesdays of each month, unless otherwise 
ordered, for the promotion of its objects, arjd the 
transaction of its business. 

Sec. 2. — This club shall meet annually on the 22d 
of February, to celebrate the birth-day of the Father 
of our Country, at such place as the Club may direct. 

Sec. 3. — Special meetings may be called by the 
President, at the written request of five members. 

Sec. 4. — The hour of meeting from the first "Wed- 
nesday in April to the first Wednesday in September, 
shall be at eight o'clock P. M., and from the first 
Wednesday in September to the first Wednesday in 
April, at 1\ o'clock P. M. 



244 FOKMS OF A CONSTITUTION 

ARTICLE II. 

QUORUM. 

At any meeting of the Club, two thirds of the mem- 
bers shall constitute a quorum. 

ARTICLE III. 

MEMBERSHIP. 

Sec. 1. — Members intending to propose a candidate 
for membership, shall submit his birthplace, name, 
age, residence and occupation to the Club. A com- 
mittee shall then be appointed by the chair, (not 
consisting of the person who proposed him,) said 
committee to visit the candidate personally, with the 
Constitution and By-Laws, and to report to the 
Club. 

Sec. 2. — After the report has been disposed of, the 
Club shall proceed to ballot for the candidate, and 
should two thirds of the ballot be for admission, he 
may be initiated (if present) at the same meeting. 
But should he not present himself for initiation within 
six weeks, (unless a sufficient reason be given,) his 
election shall become void. 

Sec. 3. — No candidate rejected shall be proposed 
again for membership within three months. 

Sec. 4. — Every candidate, upon being initiated, 
shall sign the Constitution and By-Laws of the Club, 
and thereby agree to support the same, and pay all 
legal demands against him as long as he remains a 
member. 



FOR A LITERARY OR DEBATING SOCIETY. 245 
ARTICLE IV. 

INITIATIO N FEE. 

All persons initiated into this Club, shall pay the 
sum of fifty cents upon being initiated. No person 
shall be entitled to the privileges of a member, until 
said initiation fee is paid. 

ARTICLE V. 

DUES. 

Every member shall pay the sum of twenty-five 
cents monthly, in advance, into the treasury. 

ARTICLE VI. 

FINE S. 

The Chair shall have the power to impose the fol- 
lowing fines : 

Sec. 1. — Any member who shall, at the meetings, 
make use of any improper language, or refuse to obey 
the commands of the President when called to order, 
or be guilty of any disorderly conduct, shall be fined 
for each offense ten cents. 

Sec. 2. — If any member absent himself from the 
meetings two evenings in succession, unless a satis- 
factory excuse be given, he shall be fined ten cents. 

Sec. 3. — Any member who shall leave the Club be- 
fore closing, without permission from the President, 
shall be fined ten cents. 

Sec. 4. — If a member appointed to serve on a com- 
mittee neglects to attend to its duties, he shall, unless 
he presents a satisfactory excuse, be fined ten cents. 



246 FOEMS OF A CONSTITUTION 

Sec. 5.- — Should the Secretary, Treasurer, or any 
officer, neglect to have at the meetings such books and 
papers belonging to the Club as may be necessary to 
use; or neglect to perform his duties, as laid down 
in the Constitution and By-Laws, he shall, unless 
a satisfactory excuse is given, be fined for each offense 
ten cents. 

Sec. 6. — Should a committee be hindered in the 
performance of its duty through the negligence of any 
officer, said officer shall be fined ten cents. 

Sec. 7. — If a member neglect to pay his fines or 
assessments within two weeks after being imposed, he 
shall be fined ten cents ; and for each additional week 
Jive cents. 

Sec. 8. — Should any member refuse 4o conform to 
the Eules of Debate, &c, he shall suffer such penalties 
as are there laid down. 

Sec. 9. — For such acts of negligence, and neglect 
of duty, as are not noticed in the above sections, the 
Chair, with the consent of the Club, may impose a fine 
not exceeding twenty-Jive cents. 



ARTICLE VII. 

APPEALS. 

Any member shall have the right, when fined, to 
appeal from the decision of the Chair to the meeting ; 
and, unless the Club sustain the position of the Chair, 
said fine shall be remitted. 



FOR A LITERARY OR DEBATING SOCIETY. 247 

ARTICLE VIII. 

The Club may fine the President, while presiding, 
for any neglect of duty, ten cents. 

ARTICLE IX. 

ARREARAGES. 

Sec. 1. — No member in arrears for dues more than 
four weeks, or fines to the amount of fifty cents, shall 
be privileged to vote or speak on any question, until 
said arrearages are paid. 

Sec. 2. — Every member who shall refuse or neglect 
to pay his dues for the space of two weeks, shall be 
notified thereof by the Secretary, if practicable, and 
if, after four weeks thereafter, his account remains 
unsettled, he shall stand suspended ; and shall not be 
reinstated, until all dues and arrearages against him 
shall be paid. 

Sec. 3. — Any member who shall be in arrears to the 
Club to the amount of two dollars, shall be suspended ; 
and should his account remain unsettled four weeks 
thereafter, he shall be expelled. 

ARTICLE X. 

TAX. 

If the funds of this Club should, at any time, be ex- 
hausted, or inadequate to meet its demands, there shall 
be an equal tax upon each member to make up the 
deficiency. 



248 FORMS OF A CONSTITUTION 

ARTICLE XI. 

SUSPENSION AND EXPULSION. 

Sec. 1. — Any member who shall refuse to conform 
to the Constitution, By-Laws, Eules and Eegulations 
of this Club, or be guilty of repeated disorderly con- 
duct, shall be subject to suspension or expulsion. 

Sec. 2. — When the motion for the expulsion of a 
member shall have been made, it shall be announced 
at two regular meetings previous to action being taken, 
when the accused shall be permitted to show reasons 
why he should not be expelled. If, however, two 
thirds of the members present vote in favor of the 
motion it shall be carried, and under no circumstances 
can it be reconsidered. 

Sec. 3. — Members expelled cannot be proposed 
again for membership, within one year. 

Sec. 4. — Any member who resigns from this Club, 
can not become a member again, until all dues, from the 
time he left the Club, be paid up in full. 

ARTICLE XII. 

AMENDMENTS. 

No addition, alteration, or amendment, can be made 
to these By-Laws ; neither can any part of them be 
repealed, without a two-third vote of the Club, and 
-one month's previous notice. 



FOR A LITERARY OR DEBATING SOCIETY. 249 



RULES OF ORDER. 

Kule 1. — No question shall be stated, unless moved 
by two members, nor be open for consideration, until 
stated by the Chair. When a question is before the 
Club, no motion shall be received, except to lay on the 
table, the previous question, to postpone, to refer, or to 
amend, and they shall have precedence in the order, 
in which they are arranged. 

Eule 2. — When a member intends to speak on a 
question, he shall rise in his place, and respectfully 
address his remarks to the President, confine himself 
to the question, and avoid personality. Should more 
than one member rise to speak, at the same time, the 
President shall determine who is entitled to the 
floor. 

Eule 3. — Every member shall have the privilege 
of speaking twice on any question under consideration, 
but not oftener, unless by consent of the President ; 
and no member shall speak more than once, until any 
member wishing to speak shall have spoken. 

Eule 4. — The President, while presiding, shall state 
every question coming before the Club, and immedi- 
ately before putting it to vote, shall ask : " Are you 
ready for the question ?" Should no member rise to 
speak, he shall rise to take the question ; and after he 
has risen, no member shall speak upon it, unless by 
permission of the President. 

Eule 5. — The affirmative and negative of the ques- 
tion having been both put and answered, the President 
declares whether the affirmative or negative have it, 

11* 



250 FOKMS OF A CONSTITUTION 

being himself satisfied which is the greater ; but, if he 
be not, or if before any member enters or leaves the 
Club, a member shall rise and declare himself dissat- 
isfied with the President's decision, then the President 
shall divide the Club. 

Eule 6. — Any three members calling for the yeas 
and nays, they shall be ordered by the President, and 
recorded on the minutes. | Each qualified member 
present shall, when called upon for his vote, declare 
openly and without debate, his assent or dissent to the 
question, unless he be excused by the Club) 

Eule 7. — All questions, unless otherwise fixed by 
law, shall be determined by a majority of votes. 

Eule 8. — After any question, except one of indefi- 
nite postponement, has been decided, any member 
may move a reconsideration thereof, if done in two 
weeks after the decision. A motion for a reconsidera- 
tion the second time, of the same question, shall not 
be in order at any time. 

Eule 9. — Any two members may call for a division 
of a question, when the same will admit of it. 

Eule 10. — The President, or any member, may call 
a member to order, while speaking, when the debate 
must be suspended, and the member takes his seat 
until the question of order is decided. 

Eule 11. — The President shall preserve order and 
decorum ; may speak to points of order in preference 
to other members ; and shall decide all questions of 
order, subject to an appeal to the Club by any mem- 
ber ; on which appeal no person shall speak but the 
President, and the member called to order. 

Eule 12. — No motion or proposition on a subject 



FOR A LITERARY OR DEBATING SOCIETY. 251 

different from that under consideration, shall be ad- 
mitted under color of an amendment. 

Eule 13. — Every motion shall be reduced to writ- 
ing, should the President, Secretary, or any two mem- 
bers desire it. 

Eule 14. — All Eesolutions, and Eeports of Com- 
mittees, shall be presented in writing, and signed by 
the members offering the same. 

Eule 15. — A majority of a Committee constitutes a 
quorum for the transaction of business. 

Eule 16. — An amendment to an amendment is in 
order, but not to amend an amendment to an amend- 
ment of a main question. 

Eule 17. — The previous question shall be put in 
this form, if seconded by a majority of the members 
present: " Shall the main question now be put?" If 
decided in the affirmative, the main question is to be 
put immediately, and all further debate or amendment 
must be suspended. 

Eule 18. — No subject laid on the table shall be 
taken up again on the same evening. 

Eule 19. — Members not voting shall be considered 
as voting in the affirmative, unless excused by the 
Club. 

Eule 20. — Any member offering a protest against 
any of the proceedings of this Club, may have the 
same, if in respectful language, entered in full upon 
the minutes. 

Eule 21. — No alteration can be made in these rules 
of order without a two -third vote of the Club, and one 
month's notice, neither can they be suspended but by 
a like vote, and for the evening only. 



252 FOEMS OF A CONSTITUTION 



RULES OF DEBATE. 

Rule 1. — The following shall be the exercises for 
the promotion of the objects of the Club. On the first 
meeting in every month, the Club may choose one 
member who shall deliver a lecture, essay, or recita- 
tion. 

Rule 2. — On the evening for debating, the Presi- 
dent shall first state the subject, and the sides shall 
then speak alternately, if desiring ; the leader of the 
affirmative always opening the debate, and the leader 
of the negative always answering. The leader of the 
negative only shall close the debate. 

Rule 3. — In any debate, no person shall speak more 
than twice, without permission from the President, nor 
more than once, until every member wishing to speak 
shall have spoken. No member shall occupy the floor 
more than ten minutes. 

Rule 4. — The presiding officer shall decide all de- 
bates according to the merits of the arguments used 
by either side. 

Rule 5. — These rules may be altered or amended 
by a two-third vote of the Club ; written notice of the 
intended alteration or amendment having been given 
one month previous. 



ORDER OF BUSINESS, 



.' 



1. Call to order. 

2. Calling of the roll. 



FOR A LITERARY OR DEBATING SOCIETY. 253 

3. Beading minutes of previous meeting. 

4. Propositions for membership. 

5. Eeports of special committees. 

6. Balloting for candidates. 

7. Eeports of standing committees. 

8. Secretary's report. 

9. Treasurer's report. 

1 10. Eeadings for the evening. 

11. Eecitations for the evening. 

12. Candidates initiated. 

13. Unfinished business. 

14. Debate. 

15. New business. 

16. Adjournment. 



OF FRATERNAL COURTESY. 

It is particularly enjoined that the members of this 
Club treat each other with due delicacy and respect, 
and that all discussions be conducted with candor, 
spirit, moderation and open generosity, and that all 
personal allusions and sarcastic language, by which a 
brother's feelings may be hurt, be done away with 
and carefully avoided, that, in concord and good fel- 
lowship, we may cherish and preserve the prominent 
features of our Club, 



CONSTITUTION, 
JJg-Ccuns, anb lules of <©rber 

OF THE 

ADDISONIAN SOCIETY, 

OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 



Preamble. 

We, the undersigned, do declare ourselves an Asso- 
ciation for mutual improvement in Elocution, Compo- 
sition and Debate, and for enlarging our fund of gen- 
eral intelligence: in the pursuit of which objects we 
desire to exhibit a due consideration for the opinions 
and feelings of others, to maintain a perfect command 
of temper in all our intercourse, to seek for truth in 
all our exercises — and have adopted for our govern- 
ment the following Constitution, By-Lavjs, and Rules 
of Order. 



CONSTITUTION. 



Article I. — Name. 



This Association shall be known by the name of 
the " Addisonian Society." 



FOEMS OF A CONSTITUTION. 255 

Article IT. — Officers. 

The Officers of the Association shall consist of a 
President, a Vice President, Eecording Secretary, Cor- 
responding Secretary, and Treasurer, who shall con- 
stitute a Board of Directors ; also two Tellers and an 
Edii r. 

Article III. — Officers' Duties. 

Sec. 1. — It shall be the duty of the President to pre- 
side at all meetings of the Society, to enforce a due 
observance of the Constitution, By-Laws, aid Eules 
of Order ; to decide all questions of order offer for 
consideration all motions regularly made, apportion 
duties two weeks in advancelcall all special meetings, 
appoint all committees not otherwise provided for, 
and perform such other duties as his office may require. 
He shall make no motion or amendment, nor vote on 
any question or motion, unless the Society be equally 
divided, when he shall give the casting vote. 

Sec. 2. — In the absence of the President, the Yice 
President shall perform the duties of that officer, and 
shall be Chairman of the Board of Directors. 

Sec. 3. — The Eecording Secretary shall keep in a 
book, provided for the purpose, a record of the pro- 
ceedings of the Society ; also a record of the name 
and residence of each member, showing, when he was 
admitted, and when Jie died, resigned, or was expelled; 
keep a record of the subjects debated, the disputants 
and the decisions of the Society in a separate book,) 
and shall have charge of all books, documents and 
papers belonging to the Society. 



256 FORMS OF A CONSTITUTION 

Sec. 4. The Corresponding Secretary shall notify 
absent members of their duties for the two succeeding 
meetings, also each person elected a member, of such 
election, and shall write, all communications. 

Sec. 5. The Treasurer shall receive all moneys be- 
longing to the Society ; keep an account of all dues 
and fines, and of all receipts and expenditures ; notify 
each member monthly of his dues and fines, and collect 
the same ; and shall call the Eoll at the opening and 
close of each meeting. He shall report the state of 
the Treasury whenever required by a resolution of the 
Society, and shall make no payments without a written 
order from the President, and countersigned by the 
Eecording Secretary. 

Sec. 6. The Editor shall copy, in a book provided 
for the purpose, all communications received by him, 
excluding such as may contain personal or improper 
remarks, and shall read the same at every alternate 
meeting of the Society. He shall maintain secresy 
concerning the authorship of all communications, and 
insert them without addition or alteration. Such 
periodical shall be called the "Addisonian Eeview." 

Sec. 7. The Tellers shall canvass the votes cast at 
all elections ; shall immediately make known the re- 
sult of same, and render a true written report at the 
meeting following such election. 

Sec. 8. The Board of Directors shall be a Standing 
Committee to manage the affairs of the Society, hold- 
ing meetings at least once a month. They shall de- 
cide upon all questions of debate offered in the Society, 
and shall examine and inquire into the standing of all 
persons proposed for membership, and at the next 



FOR A LITERARY OR DEBATING SOCIETY. 257 

regular meeting, report the result to the Society, who 
shall determine upon their admission. 

Sec. 9. The Board of Directors and Treasurer shall 
present to, and read before the Society, reports at the 
expiration of their terms of office. 

Article IV. — Election of Officers. 

Sec. 1. All Elections for Officers shall be held at 
the last regular meetings in June and January. The 
term of each shall commence at the meeting following 
his election. In case of a vacancy occurring in any 
office, the Society shall go into an immediate election 
to fill the same, and the officer elect shall take his seat 
immediately after such election. 

Sec. 2. All elections for officers shall be made by 
ballot, and shall be determined by two thirds of the 
votes cast. 

Article V. — Membership. 

Sec. 1. Any member may propose a person for 
membership at a regular meeting, by giving his name, 
residence and occupation, and after being reported 
'upon by the Board of Directors, the Society shall de- 
termine his admission by a three-fourth vote of the 
members present. 

Sec. 2. Any person may be elected an Honorary 
Member of the Society, by a unanimous vote at a 
regular meeting. He shall be entitled to all the privi- 
leges of a member, except holding office or voting 
upon any question or motion, and shall not be fined 
for absence, nor called upon for the initiation fee or 
dues. 



258 FOEMS OF A CONSTITUTION 

Article VI. — Amendments to Constitution, &c. 

Every proposed alteration, amendment or addition 
to this Constitution, By-Laws and Kules of Order 
hereunto annexed, must be handed to the President in 
writing, who shall publish the same to the Society, and 
at the next regular meeting, it shall be adopted by a 
two-third vote of the members present. 

Article VII. — Order of Business. 

A motion to change the Order of Business, or to 
postpone the performance of the regular duties, shall 
require, for its adoption, a vote of two thirds of the 
members present. 

Article VLlT. — Suspension of By-Laws. 

A By-Law or Bule of Order may be suspended in 
case of an emergency, by a two-third vote of the 
members present, but only for a single evening. 



BY-LAWS. 



Article I. — Meetings. 

Sec. 1. This Society shall hold its meetings, unless 
otherwise ordered, on Saturday evening of each week ; 
the hour of meeting during the months of October, 
November, December and January, shall be at 7| 
P. M., and at 8 o'clock daring the rest of the year ; the 
meetings to stand adjourned at 10\. 



FOE A LITEEAEY OE DEBATING SOCIETY. 259 

Sec. 2. Six members shall be necessary to consti- 
tute a quorum. 

Sec. 3. At the request of six members the Presi- 
dent shall call a special meeting of the Society. In 
case of absence from any special meeting, a member 
shall be fined in accordance with Article 5th, Section 
1st, of these By-Laws. 

Article II. — Inauguration of Officers. 

At the inauguration of each Officer, he shall be re- 
quired to make the following affirmation : 

" I do hereby solemnly promise, that I will faithfully 
discharge the duties of my office to the best of my 
knowledge and ability." 

Article III. — Initiation of Members. 

The following affirmation shall be required of each 
person becoming a member : 

" I do hereby solemnly promise, that I will observe 
and strictly obey all the laws, rules and regulations 
set down in the Constitution of this Society, and do 
further declare, that I entertain no ill- will toward any 
member." 

Article IV. — Debates, Essays, Eecitations, &c. 

■Sea. 1. The two Orders of Business hereunto pre- 
fixed, shall occupy alternate meetings of the Society. 
On the Debating evening, there shall be a general de- 
bate, which shall be opened on either side, by a mem- 
ber previously appointed. On the Miscellaneous 
evening, half of the members shall alternately perform 



260 FOEMS OF A CONSTITUTION 

duties, either in Essay or Kecitation, as the President 
may have previously designated. 

Sec. 2. The following questions, or such part as 
time will permit, shall be asked at every Miscellaneous 
meeting of the Society, commencing where they were 
left off at the previous meeting : 

1st. Have you lately met with any thing calculated 
to interest or improve the Society, either in History, 
Travels, Sciences, the Arts, or other branches of use- 
ful knowledge ? 

2d. Do you know of any amusing story proper to 
relate in conversation ? 

3d. Have you any questions for debate to submit 
for the consideration of this Board ? 

Sec. 3. The leaders in debate shall be allowed to 
speak fifteen minutes each time ; all others shall be 
limited to ten minutes. 

Sec. 4. All communications intended for insertion 
in the " Addisonian Eeview," must be original, and 
written by members of the Society, and handed to the 
Editor at least three days before publication. 

Article V. — Dues, Fines, &c. 

Sec. 1. The Fines shall be as follows, viz. : for late 
attendance, non-performance of duty, disorderly con- 
duct, and for calling to order without substantiating 
the point, each, five cents; for absence, (except of 
leaders on debate, which shall be fifteen cents,) ten 
cents ; and for leaving the room without permission 
of the President, twenty-five cents. 

Sec. 2. Every person on taking his seat, as a mem- 



FOR A LITERARY OR DEBATING SOCIETY. 261 

ber, shall pay to the Treasurer an initiation fee of fifty 
cents. The monthly dues shall be thirty cents, pay- 
able in advance. 

Sec. 3. In case any officer neglects a duty, he shall, 
upon motion of a member, and with the consent of 
the Society, be fined ten cents ; and should he still 
persist in neglecting such duty, he may be removed 
from his office by a two-third vote of the members 
present. 

Sec. 4. If any member calls another to order and 
fails to substantiate his point, he shall be fined in ac- 
cordance with Section first of this Article. 
• Sec. 5. Any member who shall make use of im- 
proper language, or refuse to obey when called to 
order, shall be fined in accordance with Section first 
of this Article ; and, if he repeat the offense, he may 
be expelled from the Association by a two-third vote 
of the members present. 

Sec. 6. If any member neglects to pay his fines or 
dues within two weeks after becoming payable, he 
shall be notified thereof by the Treasurer, and, if he 
still neglects payment, he shall, at the next regular 
meeting after receiving said notice, be suspended for 
two weeks ; and if then in arrears, shall be considered 
as no longer a member. 

Article VI. — Appeals, &c. 

Sec. 1. An Appeal may, in all cases, be made from 
any decision of the President ; a two-third vote of the 
members present shall be necessary to sustain the ap- 
peal. 

Sec, 2. Any member having made an appeal from 



262 FOEMS OF A CONSTITUTION 

a decision of the President, may sustain such appeal, 
and the President may give his reasons for his decision, 
before the question is put, which being passed upon, 
the matter shall be considered as settled. 

Article VII. — Committees. 
All Committees shall make their reports in writing. 



RULES OF ORDER. 



1. The President, or in his absence the "Vice Pres- 
ident, shall take the Chair at the hour named in Arti- 
cle I., Section 1, of the By-Laws. In the absence of 
those officers, a President pro tern, shall be chosen by 
the Society. 

2. The President shall be privileged to debate 
upon all subjects, on calling the Yice President, or any 
other member willing, to the Chair. 

3. After the meeting has been called to order, each 
member shall take a seat, which he shall be required 
to occupy during the evening, and shall not interrupt 
the proceedings by reading or conversation, without 
permission of the President. 

4. No member shall speak on any motion (except 
the mover thereof) more than twice, nor more than 
once until all wishing to speak have spoken ; neither 
shall he make or debate an amendment, having spoken 
twice on the original motion, without permission of 
the Society. 



FOE A LITERARY OR DEBATING SOCIETY. 263 

5. When two or more members rise at the same 
time, the President shall name the person to speak. 

6. When a member shall be called to order by the 
President or any member, he shall at once take his 
seat, and every question of order shall be decided by 
the President without debate. 

7. No motion shall be debatable until seconded. 

8. Appeals, and motions to reconsider or adjourn, 
are not debatable. 

9. When a question is under debate, no motion 
shall be received but to lay on the table, to postpone, 
to commit, or to amend. 

10. No member shall interrupt another while 
speaking, except in accordance with Eule of Order, 
No. 6. 

11. A motion to adjourn shall always be in order, 
except when another motion is before the Society. 

12. When a motion or amendment shall be made 
and seconded, the mover thereof may be called upon 
by the President or any member to reduce the same to 
writing, and hand it in at the table, from which it shall 
be read before open to the Society for debate. 

13. The mover of a motion shall be at liberty to 
accept any amendment thereto ; but if an amendment 
be offered, and not accepted, yet duly seconded, the 
Association shall pass upon it before voting upon the 
original motion. 

14. Any member may criticise Essays or Eecita- 
tions delivered before the Society, provided he do not 
occupy more than five minutes. 

15. Before taking the vote on any question, the 
President shall ask : " Are you ready for the ques- 



264 FOKMS OF A CONSTITUTION. 

tion ?" Should no one offer to speak, the President 
shall rise to put the question, and after he has risen, 
no member shall speak upon it without permission of 
the Society. 

16. When a motion to adjourn is carried, no mem- 
ber shall leave his seat, until the President have left 
his chair. 

17. When a motion has been made and decided, it 
shall be in order for any member (but such as have 
voted in the minority), to move the re-consideration 
thereof, if done within three weeks after being voted 
upon. 

18. Every officer, on leaving his office, shall give 
to his successor all papers, documents, books and 
money belonging to the Society. 

19. No smoking, and no refreshments, except 
water, shall be allowed in the Society's rooms. 



APPENDIX. 

TTERE we append, for convenience of reference, and 
■*-*- as being what every American should know and 
understand, a copy (from the Manual prepared for the 
use of the United States House of Eepresentatives,) of 
the Constitution of the United States, the Amendments 
thereto, and several accompanying documents. 



CONSTITUTION. 

We, the People of the United States, in Preamble, 
order to form a more perfect Union, es- 
tablish justice, insure domestic tran- 
quillity, provide for the common de 
fense, promote the general welfare, and 
secure the blessings of liberty to our- 
selves and our posterity, do ordain and 
establish this Constitution for the United 
States of America. 

ARTICLE I. 

SECTION I. 

All legislative powers herein granted congrew. 
shall be vested in a Congress of the United 

12 



266 



CONSTITUTION 



States, which shall consist of a Senate and 
House of Kepresentatives. 



SECTION II. 



Kepresentatives, 
how chosen. 



Qualification of 
Kepresentatives. 



Apportionment of 
Kepresentatives, 
and direct taxes. 



The House of Eepresentatives shall be 
composed of members chosen every second 
year by the people of the several States, and 
the electors in each State shall have the qual- 
ifications requisite for electors of the most 
numerous branch of the State legislature. 

ISTo person shall be a Eepresentative who 
shall not have attained the age of twenty- 
five years, and have been seven years a 
citizen of the United States, and who shall 
not, when elected, be an inhabitant of that 
State in which he shall be chosen. 

Eepresentatives and direct taxes shall be 
apportioned among the several States which 
may be included within this Union, accord- 
ing to their respective numbers, which shall 
be determined by adding to the whole num- 
ber of free persons, including those bound 
to service for a term of years, and exclud- 
ing Indians not taxed, three fifths of all 
other persons. The actual enumeration 
shall be made within three years after the 
first meeting of the Congress of the United 
States, and within every subsequent term 
census every ten of ten years, in such manner as they shall 
by law direct. The number of Eepresent- 
atives shall not exceed one for every thirty 
thousand, but each State shall have at least 



years. 



OF THE UNITED STATES. 267 

one representative ; and until such enum- 
eration shall be made, the State of New 
Hampshire shall be entitled to choose three, 
Massachusetts eight, Rhode Island and Provi- 
dence Plantations one, Connecticut five, New 
York six, New Jersey four, Pennsylvania 
eight, Delaware one, Maryland six, Vir- 
ginia ten, North Carolina five, South Car- 
olina five, and Georgia three. 

"When vacancies happen in the repre- vacancies, how 
sentation from any State, the executive ffllcd ' 
authority thereof shall issue writs of elec- 
tion to fill such vacancies. 

The House of Eepresentatives shall Kepresentatives 
choose their Speaker and other officers; bring impeach- 

i -i o • -I ments - 

and shall have the sole power of impeach- 
ment. 

SECTION III. 

The Senate of the United States shall senate, how 

chosen. 

be composed of two Senators from each 
State, chosen by the legislature thereof, 
for six years ; and each Senator shall have 
one vote. 

Immediately after they shall be assem- senators classed, 
bled in consequence of the first election, 
they shall be divided as equally as may 
be into three classes. The seats of the 
Senators of the first class shall be vacated 
at the expiration of the second year ; of 
the second class, at the expiration of the 
fourth year; and of the third class, at 
the expiration of the sixth year ; so that 



268 



CONSTITUTION 



Vacancies, how 
filled. 



Qualifications of 
Senators. 



Vice President to 
preside. 



Officers of Senate. 



Trial of impeach- 
ments. 



Judgment in im- 
peachments. 



one third may be chosen every second 
year : and if vacancies happen by resigna- 
tion or otherwise during the recess of the 
legislature of any State, the executive 
thereof may make temporary appoint- 
ments until the next meeting of the legis- 
lature, which shall then fill such vacancies. 

No person shall be a Senator who shall 
not have attained to the age of thirty 
years, and been nine years a citizen of the 
United States, and who shall not, when 
elected, be an inhabitant of that State for 
which he shall be chosen. 

The Yice President of the United States 
shall be President of the Senate, but shall 
have no vote unless they be equally di- 
vided. 

The Senate shall choose their other offi- 
cers, and also a President pro tempore in the 
absence of the Yice President, or when he 
shall exercise the office of President of the 
United States. 

The Senate shall have the sole power to 
try all impeachments. When sitting for 
that purpose, they shall be on oath or 
affirmation. When the President of the 
United States is tried, the Chief Justice 
shall preside : and no person shall be con- 
victed without the concurrence of two 
thirds of the members present. 

Judgment in cases of impeachment shall 
not extend further than to removal from 



OF THE UNITED STATES. 269 

office and disqualification to hold and en- 
joy any office of honor, trust, or profit Effect o£ 
under the United States; but the party 
convicted shall nevertheless be liable and 
subject to indictment, trial, judgment, and 
punishment, according to law. 

section rv. 

The times, places, and manner of hold- 
ing elections for Senators and Eepresenta- Elections, when 

• i • -i m i and how held. 

fives shall be prescribed in each State by 
the legislature thereof; but the Congress 
may at any time, by law, make or alter 
such regulations, except as to the places 
of choosing Senators. 

The Congress shall assemble at least 
once in every year, and such meeting shall congress assemble 
be on the first Monday in December, un- amm£ 
less they shall by law appoint a different 
day. 

SECTION V. 

Each house shall be the judge of the Elections, how 
elections, returns and qualifications of its 
own members, and a majority of each shall Quorum, 
constitute a quorum to do business ; but a 
smaller number may adjourn from day to 
day, and may be authorized to compel 
the attendance of absent members, in such Absent members, 
manner, and under such penalties, as each 
house may provide. 

Each house may determine the rules of Rules, 
its proceedings, punish its members for 



270 



CONSTITUTION 



Expulsion. disorderly behavior, and with, the con- 

currence of two thirds, expel a member, 
journals to be kept Each house shall keep a -journal of its 

and published. ± ° 

proceedings, and from time to time publish 
the same, excepting such parts as may in 
their judgment require secresy; and the 

Yeas and nays, yeas and nays of the members of either 
house on any question shall, at the desire 
of one fifth of those present, be entered 
on the journal. 

Adjournments. Neither house, during the session of 

Congress, shall, without the consent of 
the other, adjourn for more than three 
days, nor to any other place than that in 
which the two houses shall be sitting. 



Compensation. 



Privilege. 



Members not ap- 
pointed to office. 



SECTION VI. 

The Senators and Kepresentatives shall 
receive a compensation for their services, 
to be ascertained by law, and paid out of 
the Treasury of the United States. They 
shall in all cases, except treason, felony, 
and breach of the peace, be privileged 
from arrest during their attendance at the 
session of their respective houses, and in 
going to and returning from the same; 
and for any speech or debate in either 
house, they shall not be questioned in any 
other place. 

ISTo Senator or Eepresentative shall, 
during the time for which he was elected, 
be appointed to any civil office under the 



OF THE UNITED STATES. 271 

authority of the United States which shall 
have been created, or the emoluments 
whereof shall have been increased, during officers of govem- 

-, . • n _ _ _ . ment can not be 

such time; and no person holding any members, 
office under the United States, shall be a 
member of either house during his con- 
tinuance in office. 

SECTION VII. 

All bills for raising revenue shall origi- Kevenue bills, 
nate in the House of Eepresentatives ; but 
the Senate may propose or concur with 
amendments as on other bills. 

Every bill which shall have passed the biiis to be pre- 
House of Eepresentatives and the Senate, President 
shall, before it become a law, be presented 
to the President of the United States ; if his powers oyer 
he approve he shall sign it ; but if not, he 
shall return it, with his objections, to that 
house in which it shall have originated, 
who shall enter the objections at large on 
their journal, and proceed to reconsider it. Proceedings on 
If after such reconsideration two-thirds of 
that house shall agree to pass the bill, it 
shall be sent, together with the objections, 
to the other house, by which it shall like- 
wise be reconsidered, and if approved by 
two-thirds of that house, it shall become a 
law. But in all such cases the votes of both 
houses shall be determined by yeas and 
nays, and the names of the persons voting 
for and against the bill shall be entered on 



272 CONSTITUTION 

Bms to be laws if the journal of each house respectively. 

days? e e If any bill shall not be returned by the 
President within ten days (Sundays ex- 
cepted) after it shall have been presented 
to him, the same shall be a law, in like 
manner as if he had signed it, unless the 
Congress by their adjournment prevent its 
return, in which case it shall not be a 
law. 

joint orders or res- Every order, resolution, or vote, to 

proved by the which the concurrence of the Senate and 

President. x _ ' _. . , 

House oi Representatives may be neces- 
sary, (except on a question of adjourn- 
ment,) shall be presented to the President 
of the United States ; and before the same 
shall take effect, shall be approved by 
him, or, being disapproved by him, shall 
be repassed by two-thirds of the Senate 
and House of Kepresentatives, according 
to the rules and limitations prescribed in 
the case of a bill. 



SECTION VIII. 

Powers of congress The Congress shall have power to lay 

debt? asea_pay and collect taxes, duties, imposts and ex- 
cises, to pay the debts and provide for the 

General welfare, common defense and general welfare of 
the United States ; but all duties, imposts 

Duties uniform, and excises, shall be uniform throughout 
the United States ; 

Borrow money. To borrow money on the credit of the 
United States ; 



OF THE UNITED STATES. 273 

To regulate commerce with foreign na- commerce, 
tions, and among the several States, and 
with the Indian tribes ; 

To establish a uniform rule of natural- Naturalization, 
ization, and uniform laws on the subject 
of bankruptcies throughout the United Bankruptcy. 
States ; 

To coin money, regulate the value coin money, 
thereof, and of foreign coin, and fix the 
standard of weights and measures ; melfml^ 

To provide for the punishment of coun- Counterfeiting, 
terfeiting the securities and current coin 
of the United States ; 

To establish post offices and post Post roads, 
roads ; 

To promote the process of science and Promote arts and 

*■ ± o science. 

useful arts, by securing, for limited times, 
to authors and inventors the exclusive 
right to their respective writings and dis- 
coveries ; 

To constitute tribunals inferior to the inferior courts. 
Supreme Court ; 

To define and punish piracies and felo- Piracies, &c. 
nies committed on the high seas, and of- 
fenses against the law of nations ; 

To declare war, grant letters of marque Declare war and 

. .. . make captures. 

and reprisal, and make rules concerning 
captures on land and water ; 

To raise and support armies; but no Eaise armies, 
appropriation of money to that use shall 
be for a longer term than two years ; 

To provide and maintain a navy ; Navy. 

12* 



274 CONSTITUTION 

Euies and articles To make rules for the government and 
regulation of the land and naval forces ; 

Can out mmtia. To provide for calling forth the militia 
to execute the laws of the Union, suppress 
insurrections, and repel invasions ; 

organize and gov- To provide for organizing, arming, and 

em militia. -...,.. , .,. , , „ 

disciplining the militia, and lor governing 
such part of them as may be employed in 
the service of the United States, reserving 
to the States, respectively, the appointment 
of the officers, and the authority of train- 

officers of mmtia. ing the militia according to the discipline 
prescribed by Congress ; 

Exclusive legisia- To exercise exclusive legislation in all 

tion over seat of it-/ 

government. cases whatsoever, over such district (not 
exceeding ten miles square) as may by 
cession of particular States, and the ac- 
ceptance of Congress, become the seat of 
the government of the United States, and 
to exercise like authority over all places 
purchased by the consent of the legisla- 
ture of the State in which the same shall 
And over forts, ar- be, for the erection of forts, magazines, 
senais, docks, &c arseBalS; dock-yards, and other needful 

buildings; and 

To make all laws which shall be neces- 
To make general sary and proper for carrying into execution 

laws to carry pow- ,-, % . , « ., 

ers into effect, the foregoing powers, and all other powers 
vested by this Constitution in the Govern- 
ment of the United States, or in any de- 
partment or officer thereof. 



OF THE UNITED STATES. 275 



SECTION IX. 

The migration or importation of snch importation of 
persons as any of the States now existing tin isos. 
shall think proper to admit, shall not be 
prohibited by the Congress prior to \he 
year one thousand eight hundred and 
eight ; but a tax or duty may be imposed 
on such importation, not exceeding ten 
dollars for each person. 

The privilege of the writ of habeas cor- Habeas corpus, 
pus shall not be suspended, unless when 
in cases of rebellion or invasion the public 
safety may require it. 

No bill of attainder or ex post facto law Attainder and ex 

, ,, , ■* post facto laws. 

shall be passed. 

No capitation or other direct tax shall Direct taxes, 
be laid unless in proportion to the census 
or enumeration herein before directed to 
be taken. 

No tax or dutv shall be laid on articles no exportation 

"' duty. 

exported from any State. 

No preference shall be given by any commerce 

5 "1 ^ between the 

regulation of commerce or revenue to the states. 
ports of one State over those of another ; 
nor shall vessels bound to or from one 
State, be obliged to enter, clear, or pay 
duties in another. 

No money shall be drawn from the Money, how 

, n • drawn from the 

treasury, but in consequence oi appropn- treasury, 
ations made by law ; and a regular state- 
ment and account of the receipts and ex- 



276 CONSTITUTION 

To be published, penditures of all public money shall be 
published from time to time. 

No nobmty. No title of nobilit y shall be granted by 

the United States : and no person holding 
any office of profit or trust under them, 

Foreign presents shall, without the consent of the Congress, 
accept of any present, emolument, office 
or title, of any kind whatever, from any 
king, prince, or foreign state. 



and titles. 



SECTION X, 

Powers denied to No State shall enter into any treaty, 
alliance, or confederation ; grant letters of 
marque and reprisal; coin money; emit 
bills of credit ; make any thing but gold 
and silver coin a tender in payment of 
debts ; pass any bill of attainder, ex post 
facto law, or law impairing the obligation 
of contracts, or grant any title of nobility. 

other powers de- No State shall, without the consent of 

nied to States. n _. , , 

the Congress, lay any imposts or duties on 
imports or exports, except what may be 
absolutely necessary for executing its in- 
spection laws ; and the net produce of all 
duties and imposts, laid by any State on 
imports or exports, shall be for the use of 
the Treasury of the United States; and 
all such laws shall be subject to the re- 
vision and control of the Congress. 
Further denial of No State shall, without the consent of 

powers to States. ~ n -, p , 

Congress, lay any duty 01 tonnage, keep 
troops or ships of war in time of peace, 



OF THE UNITED STATES.' 277 

enter into any agreement or compact with 
another State, or with a foreign power, or 
engage in war, unless actually invaded, 
or in such imminent danger as will not 
admit of delay. 

ARTICLE II. 

SECTION I. 

The Executive power shall be vested President of the 
in a President of the United States of 
America. He shall hold his office during 
the term of four years, and together with 
the Vice President, chosen for the same 
term, be elected as follows : 

Each State shall appoint, in such man- Electors, how 
ner as the legislature thereof may direct, appom e 
a number of electors, equal to the whole 
number of Senators and Eepresentatives 
to which the State may be entitled in the 
Congress ; but no Senator or Eepresenta- 
tive, or person holding an office of trust 
or profit under the United States, shall be 
appointed an elector. 

The electors shall meet in their respect- Electors to meet 
ive States, and vote by ballot for two per- sident and vice 

n i i in -i President. 

sons, oi whom one^at least shall not be 
an inhabitant of the same State with them- 
selves. And they shall make a list of all 
the persons voted for, and of the number 
of votes for each ; which list they shall 
sign and certify, and transmit sealed to 
the seat of the government of the United 



278 



CONSTITUTION 



States, directed to the President of the 
Their votes count- Senate. The President of the Senate shall, 

ed in Congress. . 7 

m the presence of the Senate and House 
of Eepresentatives, open all the certificates, 
and the votes shall then be counted. The 
person having the greatest number of votes 
shall be the President, if such number be 
a majority of the whole number of elect- 
ors appointed ; and if there be more than 
one who have such majority, and have an 
Eepresentatives to equal number of votes, then the House of 

choose, if electors _ . _ n / . 

feii. Representatives shall immediately choose, 

by ballot, one of them for President ; and 
if no person have a majority, then from 
the five highest on the list the said House 
shall in like manner choose the President. 

Votes by states. But in choosing the President, the votes 
shall be taken by States, the representa- 
tion from each State having one vote ; a 
quorum for this purpose shall consist of a 
member or members from two-thirds of 
the States, and a majority of all the States 

vice President, shall be necessary to a choice. In every 
case, after the choice of a President, the 
person having the greatest number of 
votes of the electors shall be the Yice 
President. But if there should remain 
two or more who have equal votes, the 
Senate shall choose from them by ballot 
the Vice President* 



* This clause of the Constitution has been amended. 
See twelfth article of the amendments, page 296. 



OF THE UNITED STATES. 279 

The Congress may determine the time Election and meet- 
of choosing the electors, and the day on 
which they shall give their votes ; which 
day shall be the same throughout the 
United States. 

ISTo person except a natural-born citizen, Qualification of 

. . » -i -r-r • -i « -i President. 

or a citizen of the United States at the 
time of the adoption of this Constitution, 
shall be eligible to the office of President: 
neither shall any person be eligible to 
that office who shall not have attained to 
the age of thirty-five years, and been 
fourteen years a resident within the United 
States. 

In case of the removal of the President Removal, death, 

„, . , , . . &c, of President. 

from office, or 01 his death, resignation, or 
inability to discharge the powers and du- 
ties of the said office, the same shall de- 
volve on the Yice President, and the Con- 
gress may by law provide for the case of 
removal, death, resignation, or inability, 
both of the President and Yice President, 
declaring what officer shall act as Presi- 
dent, and such officer shall act accordingly, 
until the disability be removed or a Presi- 
dent shall be elected. 

The President shall, at stated times, compensation of 

President. 

receive for his services a compensation 
which shall neither be increased nor 
diminished during the period for which 
he shall have been elected, and he shall 
not receive within that period any other 



280 CONSTITUTION 

emolument from the United States, or any 
of them. 

Before he enter on the execution of his 
office, he shall take the following oath or 
affirmation : 

Oath. " I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I 

will faithfully execute the office of Presi- 
dent of the United States; and will, to 
the best of my ability, preserve, protect, 
and defend the Constitution of the United 
States." 

SECTION II. 

Powers and duties The President shall be commander-in- 

of the President. , . p „ , ^ „ , TT . n 

chief oi the army and navy of the United 
States, and of the militia of the several 
States when called into the actual service 
of the United States ; he may require the 
opinion, in writing, of the principal officer 
in each of the executive departments, upon 
any subject relating to the duties of their 
respective offices ; and he shall have power 
to grant reprieves and pardons for offenses 
against the United States, except in cases 
of impeachment. 

He shall have power, by and with the 
advice and consent of the Senate, to make 
treaties, provided two -thirds of the Sena- 
tors present concur ; and he shall nomi- 
nate, and, by and with the advice and 
Appointment of consent of the Senate, shall appoint am- 

public officers. , -. , -, -. -, . . . M -. 

bassadors, other public ministers and con- 



OF THE UNITED STATES. 281 

suls, judges of the Supreme Court, and all 
other officers of the United States whose 
appointments are not herein otherwise 
provided for, and which shall be estab- 
lished by law ; but the Congress may by 
law vest the appointment of such inferior 
officers as they think proper, in the Presi- 
dent alone, in the courts of law, or in the 
heads of departments. 

The President shall have power to fill vacancies in 

-,, , , , office. 

up all vacancies that may happen during 
the recess of the Senate, by granting 
commissions which shall expire at the 
end of their next session. 

SECTION III. 

He shall from time to time give to the Further po^rs 
Congress information of the state of the President. 
Union, and recommend to their considera- 
tion such measures as he shall judge 
necessary and expedient; he may, on 
extraordinary occasions, convene both 
houses, or either of them, and in case of 
disagreement between them with respect 
to the time of adjournment, he may ad- 
journ them to such time as he shall think 
proper ; he shall receive ambassadors and 
other public ministers ; he shall take care 
that the laws be faithfully executed, and 
shall commission all the officers of the 
United States. 



282 CONSTITUTION 

SECTION IV. 

impeachment. The President, Vice President, and all 

civil officers of the United States, shall be 
removed from office on impeachment for 
and conviction of treason, bribery, or other 
high crimes and misdemeanors. 

ARTICLE III. 

SECTION I. 

Judiciary and ten- The judicial power of the United States 
shall be vested in one Supreme Court, and 
in such inferior courts as the Congress may 
from time to time ordain and establish. 
The judges, both of the supreme and 
inferior courts, shall hold their offices 
during good behavior, and shall, at stated 
times, receive for their services a compen- 
sation, which shall not be diminished 
during their continuance in office. 

SECTION II. 

Powers of the The judicial power shall extend to all 

judiciary. . J / . . _ . 

cases, in law and equity, arising under this 
Constitution, the laws of the United States, 
and treaties made, or which shall be made, 
under their authority ; to all cases affect- 
ing ambassadors, other public ministers 
and consuls ; to all cases of admiralty and 
maritime jurisdiction; to controversies to 
which the United States shall be a party ; to 
controversies between two or more States ; 
between a State and citizens of another 



OF THE UNITED STATES. 283 

State ; between citizens of different States; 
between citizens of the same State claiming 
lands under grants of different States ; and 
between a State, or the citizens thereof, 
and foreign States, citizens, or subjects. 

In all cases affecting ambassadors, other Jurisdiction of the 

,,. ... -i t i,i • Supreme Court 

public ministers, and consuls, and those m 
which a State shall be a party, the Supreme 
Court shall have original jurisdiction. In 
all the other cases before mentioned, the 
Supreme Court shall have appellate juris- 
diction, both as to law and fact, with such 
exceptions and under such regulations as 
the Congress shall make. 

The trial of all crimes, except in cases Trials by jury, 
of impeachment, shall be by jury ; and 
such trial shall be held in the State where And where held, 
the said crimes shall have been commit- 
ted ; but when not committed within any 
State, the trial shall be at such place or 
places as the Congress may by law have 
directed. 

SECTION III. 

Treason against the United States shall Treason, 
consist only in levying war against them, 
or in adhering to their enemies, giving 
them aid and comfort. No person shall 
be convicted of treason unless on the tes- 
timony of two witnesses to the same overt 
act, or on confession in open court. 

The Congress shall have power to de- 
clare the punishment of treason ; but no 



284 CONSTITUTION 

No corruption of attainder of treason shall work corruption 
of blood or forfeiture, except during the 
life of the person attainted. 



ARTICLE IV. 

SECTION I. 

Acts of states Full faith and credit shall be given in 

each State to the public acts, records, and 
judicial proceeding of every other State. 
And the Congress may, by general laws, 
prescribe the manner in which such acts, 
records, and proceedings shall be proved, 
and the effect thereof. 

SECTION II. 

Privileges of citi- The citizens of each State shall be en- 

zenship. -in „ . n n . 

titled to all privileges and immunities of 

citizens in the several States. 

Fugitives from A person charged in any State with 

ivered up. treason, felony, or other crime, who shall 

flee from justice, and be found in another 

State, shall, on demand of the Executive 

authority of the State from which he 

fled, be delivered up, to be removed to 

the State having jurisdiction of the 

crime. 

Fugitive slaves to ]STo person held to service or labor in 

be delivered up. x 

one State, under the laws thereof, escaping 
into another, shall, in consequence of any 
law or regulation therein, be discharged 
from such service or labor, but shall be 



OF THE UNITED STATES. 285 

delivered up on claim of the party to 
whom such service or labor may be due. 

SECTION III. 

New States may be admitted by the New states. 
Congress into this Union; but no new 
State shall be formed or erected within 
the j urisdiction of any other State ; nor any 
State be formed by the junction of two or 
more States, or parts of States, without 
the consent of the legislatures of the 
States concerned, as well as of the Con- 
gress. 

The Congress shall have power to dis- Territory and 
pose of and make all needful rules and the united states, 
regulations respecting the territory or 
other property belonging to the United 
States; and nothing in this Constitution 
shall be so construed as to prejudice any 
claims of the United States, or of any 
particular State. 

SECTION IV. 

The United States shall guaranty to Republican form 

~ . . of government 

every State m this Union a republican 

form of government, and shall protect Protection of 

„ T* . . . r , States. 

each oi them against invasion, and, on 
application of the legislature, or of the 
Executive (when the legislature can not be 
convened), against domestic violence. 



286 CONSTITUTION 



AETICLE V. 

Amendments of The Congress, whenever two-thirds of 

this Constitution. _ . . ° _ _' . _ _, 

both nouses snail deem it necessary, snail 
propose amendments to this Constitution, 
or, on the application of the legislatures 
of two-thirds of the several States, shall 
call a convention for proposing amend- 
ments, which, in either case, shall be valid 
to all intents and purposes, as part of this 
Constitution, when ratified by the legis- 
latures of three-fourths of the several 
States, or by conventions in three-fourths 
thereof, as the one or the other mode of 
ratification may be proposed by the Con- 
gress ; provided that no amendment which 
may be made prior to the year one thou- 
sand eight hundred and eight, shall in any 
manner affect the first and fourth clauses 
in the ninth section of the first article; 
and that no State, without its consent, 
shall be deprived of its equal suffrage 
in the Senate. 



ARTICLE VI. 

Debts of former All debts contracted and engagements 

ognized. entered into before the adoption of this 

Constitution, shall be as valid against the 

United States under this Constitution, as 

under the confederation. 



OF THE UNITED STATES. 287 

This Constitution, and the laws of the what constitutes 

' . the supreme law. 

United States which shall be made in pur- 
suance thereof, and all treaties made, or 
which shall be made, under the authority 
of the United States, shall be the supreme 
law of the land ; and the judges in every 
State shall be bound thereby, any thing 
in the Constitution or laws of any State 
to the contrary notwithstanding. 

The Senators and Kepresentatives before _ th r ° a f p uMc 
mentioned, and the members of the sev- 
eral State legislatures, and all executive 
and judicial officers, both of the United 
States and of the several States, shall be 
bound by oath or affirmation to support 
this Constitution; but no religious test No religious test 
shall ever be required as a qualification 
to any office or public trust under the 
United States. 

ARTICLE VII. 

The ratification of the conventions of Ratification, 
nine States, shall be sufficient for the 
establishment of this Constitution between 
the States so ratifying the same. 

Done in convention, by the unanimous 
consent of the States present, the sev- 
enteenth day of September, in the year 
of our Lord one thousand seven hun- 
dred and eighty-seven, and of the In- 



288 CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES. 

dependence of the United States of 
America the twelfth. In witness where- 
of, we have hereunto subscribed our 
names. 

GEO: WASHINGTON, 

President, and Deputy from Virginia. 



NEW HAMPSHIRE. 

John Langdon, 
Nicholas G-ilman. 

MASSACHUSETTS. 

Nathaniel G-orham, 
Eufus King. 

CONNECTICUT. 

William Samuel Johnson 
Roger Sherman. 

NEW YORK. 

Alexander Hamilton. 

NEW JERSEY. 

"William Livingston, 
David Brearley, 
William Paterson, 
Jonathan Dayton. 

PENNSYLVANIA. 

B. Franklin, 
Thomas Mifflin, 
Robert Morris, 
George Clymer, 
Thomas Fitzsimons. 
Jared Ingersoll, 
James Wilson, 
Gouv. Morris. 



DELAWARE. 

George Read, 
Gunning Bedford, jun., 
John Dickinson, 
Richard Bassett, 
Jacob Broom. 

MARYLAND. 

, James McHenry, 

Dan of St. Thomas Jenifer, 

Daniel Carroll. 

VIRGINIA. 

John Blair, 

James Madison, jun. 

NORTH CAROLINA. 

Wilham Blount, 
Rich'd Dobbs Spaight, 
Hu. Williamson. 

SOUTH CAROLINA. 

J. Rutledge, 

Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, 

Charles Pinckney, 

Pierce Butler. 

GEORGIA. 
William Few, 
Abr. Baldwin. 



Attest- WILLIAM JACKSON, Secretary. 



PROCEEDINGS 



OF THE 



CONVENTION WHICH FOKMED THE CONSTITUTION 



IN CONVENTION. 

Monday, September 17, 1787. 

Resolved, That the preceding Constitution be laid 
before the United States in Congress assembled ; and 
that it is the opinion of this Convention that it should 
afterward be submitted to a convention of delegates, 
chosen in each State by the people thereof under the 
recommendation of its legislature, for their assent and 
ratification ; and that each convention assenting to and 
ratifying the same should give notice thereof to the 
United States in Congress assembled. 

Resolved, That it is the opinion of this Convention 
that, as soon as the conventions of nine States shall 
have ratified this Constitution, the United States in 
Congress assembled should fix a day on which electors 
should be appointed by the States which shall have 
ratified the same, and a day on which electors should 
assemble to vote for the President, and the time and 
place for commencing proceedings under this Consti- 
tution ; that after such publication, the electors should 



290 PROCEEDINGS OF THE CONVENTION 

be appointed, and the Senators and Eepresentatives 
elected ; that the electors should meet on the day fixed 
for the election of the President, and should transmit 
their votes, certified, signed, sealed, and directed, as 
the Constitution requires, to the Secretary of the 
United States in Congress assembled ; that the Senators 
and Eepresentatives should convene at the time and 
place assigned ; that the Senators should appoint a 
President of the Senate, for the sole purpose of re- 
ceiving, opening, and counting the votes for President ; 
and that, after he shall be chosen, the Congress, together 
with the President, should, without delay, proceed to 
execute this Constitution. 

By the unanimous order of the Convention : 

GEO: WASHINGTON, President 

William Jackson, Secretary. 



LETTER OF THE CONVENTION TO THE OLD CONGRESS. 



in convention. 

Septembee 17, 1787. 

Sir: We have now the honor to submit to the 
consideration of the United States in Congress assem- 
bled, that Constitution which has appeared to us the 
most advisable. 

The friends of our country have long seen and de- 
sired that the power of making war, peace, and treaties ; 
that of levying money, and regulating commerce, and 



"WHICH FORMED THE CONSTITUTION. 291 

the correspondent executive and judicial authorities, 
should be fully and effectually vested in the General 
Government of the Union: but the impropriety of 
delegating such extensive trust to one body of men is 
evident; hence results the necessity of a different 
organization. 

It is obviously impracticable in the federal govern- 
ment of these States to secure all rights of independ- 
ent sovereignty to each, and yet provide for the interest 
and safety of all. Individuals entering into society 
must give up a share of liberty to preserve the rest. 
The magnitude of the sacrifice must depend as well 
on situation and circumstance as on the object to be 
obtained. It is at all times difficult to draw with pre- 
cision the line between those rights which must be 
surrendered and those which may be reserved ; and, on 
the present occasion, this difficulty was increased by a 
difference among the several States as to their situa- 
tion, extent, habits, and particular interests. 

In all our deliberations on this subject, we kept 
steadily in our view that which appears to us the 
greatest interest of every true American — the consoli- 
dation of our Union — in which is involved our pros- 
perity, felicity, safety, perhaps our national existence. 
This important consideration, seriously and deeply 
impressed on our minds, led each State in the Conven- 
tion to be less rigid on points of inferior magnitude 
than might have been otherwise expected ; and thus 
the Constitution which we now present is the result 
of a spirit of amity, and of that mutual deference and 
concession which the peculiarity of our political situa- 
tion rendered indispensable. 



292 PROCEEDINGS OF THE CONVENTION 

That it will meet the full and entire approbation of 
every State, is not, perhaps, to be expected ; but each 
will doubtless consider that, had her interest been 
alone consulted, the consequences might have been 
particularly disagreeable or injurious to others. That 
it is liable to as few exceptions as could reasonably 
have been expected, we hope and believe. That it 
may promote the lasting welfare of that country so 
dear to us all, and secure her freedom and happiness, 
is our most ardent wish. 

"With great respect, we have the honor to be, 
Sir, your Excellency's most obedient, humble serv- 
ants. 

By unanimous order of the Convention : 

GEO : WASHINGTON, President 

His Excellency the President of Congress. 



■».».<». 



PROCEEDINGS IN THE OLD CONGRESS. 



UNITED STATES IN CONGRESS ASSEMBLED. 

Friday, September 28, 1787 
Present. — New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecti- 
cut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, 
Yirginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia ; 
and from Maryland, Mr. Eoss. 

Congress having received the report of the Conven- 
tion lately assembled in Philadelphia — 

Resolved, unanimously f That the said report, with 



WHICH FOKMED THE CONSTITUTION. 293 

the resolutions and letter accompanying the same, be 
transmitted to the several legislatures, in order to be 
submitted to a convention of delegates chosen in each 
State by the people thereof, in conformity to the re- 
solves in the Convention made and provided in that 
case. 

CHAELES THOMSON, Secretary. 



AMENDMENTS. 



ARTICLE I. 



Congress shall make no law respecting an establish- 
ment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise 
thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the 
press ; or the right of the people peaceably to assem- 
ble, and to petition the government for a redress of 
grievances. 

ARTICLE II. 

A well regulated militia being necessary to the 
security of a free State, the right of the people to 
keep and bear arms shall not be infringed. 

ARTICLE III. 

No soldier shall, in time of peace, be quartered in 
any house without the consent of the owner, nor in 
time of war but in a manner to be prescribed by law. 

ARTICLE IV. 

The right of the people to be secure in their per- 
sons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable 
searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no 
warrants shall issue but upon probable cause, sup- 



AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION. 295 

ported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describ- 
ing the place to be searched, and the persons or things 
to be seized. 

ARTICLE V. 

No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or 
otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or 
indictment of a grand jury, except in cases arising in 
the land or naval forces, or in the militia, when in 
actual service in time of war or public danger; nor 
shall any } erson be subject for the same offense to be 
twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be 
compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against 
himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, 
without due process of law ; nor shall private property 
be taken for public use without just compensation. 

ARTICLE VI. 

In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy 
the right to a speedy and public trial by an impartial 
jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall 
have been committed, which district shall have been 
previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of 
the nature and cause of the accusation; to be con- 
fronted with the witnesses against him ; to have com- 
pulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, 
and to have the assistance of counsel for his defense. 

ARTICLE VII. 

In suits at common law, where the value in contro- 
versy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by 
jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury 



296 AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION. 

shall be otherwise reexamined in any court of the 
United States, than according to the rules of the com- 
mon law. 

ARTICLE VIII. 

Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive 
fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments in- 
flicted. 

ARTICLE IX. 

The enumeration in the Constitution of certain 
rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage 
others retained by the people. 

ARTICLE X. 

The powers not delegated to the United States by 
the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are 
reserved to the States respectively, or to the people. 

ARTICLE XI. 

The judicial power of the United States shall not 
be construed to extend to any suit in law or equity, 
commenced or prosecuted against one of the United 
States by citizens of another State, or by citizens or 
subjects of any foreign State. 

ARTICLE XII. 

The electors shall meet in their respective States, 
and vote by ballot for President and Vice President, 
one of whom at least shall not be an inhabitant of the 
same State with themselves ; they shall name in their 
ballots the person voted for as President, and in dis- 



AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION. 297 

tinct ballots the person voted for as Vice President ; 
and they shall make distinct lists of all persons voted 
for as President, and of all persons voted for as Yice 
President, and of the number of votes for each ; which 
lists they shall sign and certify, and transmit sealed to 
the seat of the government of the United States, 
directed to the President of the Senate. The Presi- 
dent of the Senate shall, in the presence of the Senate 
and House of Eepresentatives, open all the certificates, 
and the votes shall then be counted ; the person hav- 
ing the greatest number of votes for President shall be 
the President, if such number be a majority of the 
whole number of electors appointed ; and if no person 
have such majority, then from the persons having the 
highest numbers, not exceeding three, on the list of 
those voted for as President, the House of Eepresenta- 
tives shall choose immediately by ballot the Presi- 
dent. But in choosing the President, the votes shall 
be taken by States, the representation from each State 
having one vote ; a quorum for this purpose shall con- 
sist of a member or members from two-thirds of the 
States, and a majority of all the States shall be neces- 
sary to a choice. And if the House of Eepresentatives 
shall not choose a President, whenever the right of 
choice shall devolve upon them, before the fourth day 
of March next following, then the Yice President shall 
act as President, as in the case of the death, or other 
constitutional disability of the President. 

The person having the greatest number of votes as 
Yice President shall be the Yice President, if such, 
number be a majority of the whole number of electors 
appointed; and if no person have a majority, then 

13* 



298 AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION. 

from the two highest numbers on the list the Senate 
shall choose the Vice President; a quorum for the 
purpose shall consist of two-thirds of the whole num- 
ber of Senators, and a majority of the whole number 
shall be necessary to a choice. But no person consti- 
tutionally ineligible to the office of President shall be 
eligible to that of Yice President of the United States. 



INDEX 

• TO 

THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES. 



A. 

Art. Sec. Page 

Arts and Sciences, to be promoted 1 8 273 

Acts, records, and judicial proceedings of each State en- 
titled to faith and credit in other States 4 1 284 

Amendments to the Constitution, how made 5 1 286 

made 294 

Appointments, to be made by the President 2 2- 289 

Apportionment of Representatives 1 2 266 

Appropriations by law 1 9 275 

Appropriation for army not to exceed two years 1 8 273 

Armies, Congress to raise and support 1 8 273 

Arms, right of the people to keep and bear 294 

Assemble, people may 294 

Attainder, bill of, prohibited to Congress 1 9 275 

prohibited to the States 1 10 276 

of treason shall not work corruption of blood 
or forfeiture, except during the life of the 

person attainted 3 3 284 

B. 

Bail, excessive, not required 296 

Bankruptcy laws to be uniform 1 8 273 

Bills for raising revenue shall originate in the House of 

Representatives 1 7 271 



800 INDEX TO THE CONSTITUTION. 

Art. Sec. Page 
Bills, before they become laws, shall be passed by both 
houses and approved by the President ; or, if dis- 
approved, shall be passed by two-thirds of each 

house 1 1 211 

not returned in ten days, unless an adjournment in- 
tervene, shall be laws 1 1 212 

Borrow money, Congress may 1 8 212 

C. 

Capitation tax, apportionment of 1 9 215 

Census, or enumeration, to be made every ten years 1 2 266 

Citizens of each State shall be entitled to the privileges 
and immunities of citizens in the several 

States 4 2 284 

Claims, no prejudice to certain 4 3 285 

of the United States, or of the several States, not 
to be prejudiced by any construction of the Con- 
stitution 4 3 285 

Coasting trade, regulation respecting 1 9 215 

Coins, Congress fix value of foreign 1 8 213 

Commerce, Congress to regulate 1 8 213 

regulations respecting, to be equal and uni- 
form 1 9 215 

Commissions to be granted by the President 2 3 281 

Common law recognized and established, 1th amendment . . 295 

Congress vested with power 1 1 265 

may alter the regulations of State legislatures 
concerning elections of Senators and Eepre- 
sentatives, except as to place of choosing Sen- 
ators 1 4 269 

shall assemble once every year 1 4 269 

officers of government can not be members of . . 1 6 211 
may provide for cases of removal, death, &c, 

of President and Vice President 2 1 219 

may determine the time of choosing electors of 

President and Vice President 2 1 219 

may invest the appointment of inferior officers 
in the President alone, in the courts of law, or 
the heads of departments 2 2 281 



INDEX TO THE CONSTITUTION. 301 

Art Sec. Page 
Congress may establish, courts interior to the Supreme 

Court 3 1 282 

may declare the punishment of treason 3 3 283 

may prescribe the manner of proving the acts 

and records of each State 4 1 286 

to assent to the formation of new States 4 3 285 

may propose amendments to Constitution or call 

a convention 5 1 286 

to lay and collect duties 1 8 272 

to borrow money 1 8 212 

to regulate commerce 1 8 273 

to establish uniform laws of bankruptcy and 

naturalization 1 8 213 

to coin money, regulate the value of coin, 
and fix a standard of weights and meas- 
ures 1 8 273 

to punish counterfeiting 1 8 2*73 

to constitute tribunals inferior to the Supreme 

Court 1 8 273 

to define and punish piracies, felonies on the 
high seas, and offenses against the laws of 

nations ■ 1 8 273 

to establish post offices and post roads 1 8 273 

to authorize patents to authors and inventors. . . 18 273 
to declare war, grant letters of marque, and 

make rules concerning captures 1 8 273 

to raise and support armies 1 8 273 

to provide and maintain a navy 1 8 273 

to make rules for the government of the army 

and navy 1 8 274 

to call out the militia in certain cases 1 8 274 

to organize, arm, and discipline militia 1 8 274 

to exercise exclusive legislation over seat of gov- 
ernment 1 8 274 

to pass laws necessary to carry the enumerated 

powers into effect 1 8 274 

to dispose of and make rules concerning the 
territory or other property of the United 
States 4 3 285 



302 INDEX TO THE CONSTITUTION. 

Art. Sec Page 
Congress, President may convene and adjourn, in certain 

cases 2 3 281 

Constitution, how amended 5 1 286 

laws, and treaties to be declared the supreme 

law 6 1 28? 

rendered operative by the ratification of nine 

States 1 1 281 

Contracts, no law impairing 1 10 2*76 

Conventions for proposing amendments to the Constitu- 
tion 5 1 286 

Counterfeiting, Congress to provide for punishment of . . . . 1 8 213 

Court, Supreme, its original and appellate jurisdiction. ... 3 2 283 
Courts inferior to the Supreme Court may be ordained by 

Congress 1 8 213 

Ditto ditto 3 1 282 

Crimes, persons accused of, fleeing from justice, may be 

demanded 4 2 284 

how to be tried 3 2 280 

Criminal prosecutions, proceedings in cases of. 295 

D. 

Debts against the confederation to be valid. 6 1 286 

Duties to be laid by Congress, and to be uniform 1 8 212 

further provision respecting 1 9 215 

can not be laid by the States 1 10 216 

on exports prohibited 1 9 215 

on imports and exports imposed by States shall 

inure to the treasury of the United States 1 10 216 

E. 

Elections of Senators and Eepresentatives shall be pre- 
scribed by the States 1 4 269 

qualifications and returns of members of Con- 
gress to be determined by each house I 5 269 

Electors of President and Vice President, how chosen, and 

their duties 2 1 211 

altered (see twelfth amendment) 296 

to vote the same day throughout the United 
/ States 2 1 219 



INDEX TO THE CONSTITUTION. 303 

Art. Sec. Page 
Electors, no Senator, or Eepresentative, or public officer, 

shall serve as 2 1 277 

Enumeration every ten years 1 2 266 

Executive power vested in a President (see President). . . . 2 1 211 

Exports not to be taxed 1 9 2*75 

and imports, States prohibited from laying du- 
ties on 110 276 

Ex post facto law, none shall be passed 1 9 215 

prohibited to States 1 10 276 

F. 

Fines, excessive, prohibited 296 

Fugitives from justice to be delivered up 4 2 284 

from service may be reclaimed 4 2 284 

H. 

Habeas corpus, writ of, can only be suspended in cases of 

rebellion or invasion 1 9 275 

Bouse of Representatives. (See Representatives.) 

I. 

Impeachment to be brought by House of Representa- 
tives 1 2 267 

tried by the Senate 1 3 268 

judgment on 1 3 268 

All civil officers liable to 2 4 282 

Importation of slaves, not prohibited till 1808 1 9 275 

J. 

Judges shall hold their offices during good behavior. ... 3 1 282 

their compensation 3 1 282 

Judiciary — tribunals inferior to Supreme Court may be 

created 1 8 273 

Judicial power vested in a Supreme Court and courts in- 
ferior 3 1 282 

powers of the judiciary 3 2 282 

restriction as to suits against a State 296 

Judicial proceedings of each State are entitled to faith and 

credit in every State 4 1 284 



304 INDEX TO THE CONSTITUTION. 

Art. Soc. Page 
Jury trial secured, and shall be held in the State where 

the crime shall have been committed 3 2 283 

further regulated, (6th amendment) 295 

secured in suits at common law where the value 
in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, 
(1th amendment) 295 

L. 

Law, what is declared the supreme 6 1 281 

common, recognized and established, (1th amend- 
ment) • 295 

Laws, President to see them faithfully executed 2 3 281 

Legislative powers vested in Congress. (See Congress.) 

Loans, authority to make 1 8 212 

M. 

Marque and reprisal, letters of 1 8 213 

Militia to be called out 1 8 214 

to be officered by the States 1 8 214 

to be commanded by the President 2 2 280 

their right to keep and bear arms secured, (2d 

amendment) 294 

Money shall be drawn from the treasury only by appro- 
priation laws 1 9 215 

Congress to coin and regulate value of. 1 8 213 

States can not make 1 10 216 

K. 

Naturalization, uniform rules of. 1 8 213 

Navy, Congress to provide and govern 1 8 213 

Nobility, titles of, shall not be granted by the United 

States 1 9 216 

nor by the States 1 10 216 

0. 

Officers of the House of Representatives shall be chosen 

by the House „ 1 2 261 

of the Senate shall be chosen by the Senate 1 3 268 

civil, may be removed by impeachment 2 4 282 



INDEX TO THE CONSTITUTION". 305 

Art. Sec. Page 
Order of one house requiring the concurrence of the 

other 1 7 272 

Oath of the President 2 1 280 

of the public offioers 6 1 281 

P. 

Pardons, President may grant 2 2 280 

Patents to be granted to inventors 1 8 273 

Petition, right of. 294 

Persons held to service or labor, their importation or mi- 
gration into the United States may be prohib- 
ited after 1808 19 275 

escaping from one State to another shall be 

delivered up to those entitled to service 4 2 284 

Piracy, Congress to prescribe punishment for 1 8 273 

Post offices and post roads, establishment of 1 8 273 

Powers not delegated to Congress nor prohibited to the 

States are reserved, (10th amendment) . . 296 

legislative. (See Congress.) 
executive. (See President.) 
judicial. (See Judicial.) 
Presents from foreign powers to public officers prohib- 
ited 1 9 276 

Press, freedom of. 294 

President of the United States vested with the executive 

power 2 1 277 

shall be chosen for four 

years 2 1 277 

how elected 2 1 277 

same, (12th amendment). . . 296-7 

qualifications for 2 1 279 

who shall act in case of 

vacancy 2 1 279 

compensation of 2 1 279 

shall take an oath of 

office 2 1 280 

may be removed by im- 
peachment 2 4 282 

President, commander of army, navy, militia 2 2 280 



306 



INDEX TO THE CONSTITUTION. 



Art. Sec. Page 
President may require the written opinions of the heads 

of departments 2 2 280 

may reprieve and pardon 2 2 280 

may make treaties with consent of the Senate. . 2 2 280 
may appoint to office with consent of the 

Senate 2 2 280 

shall fill up vacancies happening during the re- 
cess of the Senate 2 2 281 

shall give information to Congress and recom- 
mend measures 2 3 281 

may convene both houses, or either house '. 2 3 281 

may adjourn them in case of disagreement. ... 2 3 281 
shall receive ambassadors and public minis- 
ters. 2 3 281 

shall take care that the laws be faithfully ex- 
ecuted 2 3 281 

shall commission all officers 2 3 281 

Privileges and immunities of members of Congress 1 6 2 TO 

of citizens. (See Citizens, also Eights.) 

Property, Congress to provide for care of public 4 3 285 

shall not be taken for public use without just 

compensation, (5th amendment) 295 

Punishments, cruel and unusual, prohibited 296 

Q. 

Quorum for business, what shall be a 1 5 269 

of States in choosing a President by the House 

of Representatives 2 1 278 

Quartered — no soldier to be quartered on a citizen 294 

R. 

Receipts and expenditures, accounts of, to be published. . 1 9 2*75 

Records, how to be authenticated 4 1 284 

Religion — no law to be made — free exercise of. 294 

religious test not required 6 . 287 

Reprieves granted by the President 2 2 280 

Representatives, House of, composed of members chosen 

every second year 1 2 266 

qualifications of voters 1 2 266 



INDEX TO THE CONSTITUTION. 307 

Art Sec. Page 

Representatives, House of, qualifications of members 1 2 266 

apportionment of 1 2 266 

vacancies, how supplied 1 2 267 

shall choose their officers 1 2 267 

shall have the power of im- 
peachment 1 2 267 

shall be the judge of the election 
and qualifications of its mem- 
bers 1 5 269 

what shall be a quorum 1 5 269 

any number may adjourn, and 
compel the attendance of ab- 
sentees 1 5 269 

may determine the rules of pro- 
ceeding 1 5 269 

may punish or expel a member. 1 5 269 
shall keep a journal and publish 

the same 1 5 270 

shall not adjourn for more than 
three days, nor to any other 
place, without the consent ot 

the Senate 1 5 270 

one-fifth may require the yeas 

and nays 1 5 270 

shall originate bills for raising 

revenue 1 7 271 

compensation to be ascertained 

bylaw 1 6 270 

privileged from arrest, except in 

certain cases 1 6 270 

Representatives shall not be questioned for speech or debate 

in the House 1 6 270 

shall not be appointed to office 1 6 270 

shall not serve as electors of Presi- 
dent 2 1 277 

and direct taxes apportioned according to 

numbers 1 2 266 

Representation of a State, vacancies in, supplied until a new 

election by executive authority 1 2 267 



308 INDEX TO THE CONSTITUTION. 

Art. Sea Page 
Resolution, order, or vote, requiring the concurrence of 
both, houses, to undergo the formalities of 

bills 1 1 212 

Revenue hills to originate in the House of Represent- 
atives 1 1 211 

Rights of the citizen declared to be — 

privileges of citizens of the several 
States 4 2 284 

liberty of conscience in matters of 
religion 294 

freedom of speech and of the press. . . . 294 

to assemble and petition 294 

to keep and bear arms 294 

to be exempt from the quartering of 
soldiers 294 

to be secure from unreasonable 
searches and seizures 294 

to be free from answering for a crime, 
unless on presentment or indict- 
ment of a jury 295 

not to be twice jeoparded, for the same 

offense 295 

not to be compelled to be a witness 

against himself 295 

not to be deprived of life, liberty, or 
property, without due course of 
law 295 

private property not to be taken for 

public use 295 

in criminal prosecutions, shall enjoy 
the right of a speedy trial by jury, 
with all the means necessary for 
his defense 295 

in civil cases, trial to be by a jury, 
and shall only be reexamined ac- 
cording to common law 295 

excessive bail shall not be required, 
excessives fines imposed, nor cruel 
or unusual punishments inflicted. . . . 296 



INDEX TO THE CONSTITUTION". 309 

Art Sec. Pago 
Bights of the citizen, enumeration of certain rights shall 

not operate against retained rights . . 296 

Rules, each house shall determine its own 1 5 269 

s. 

Seat of government, exclusive legislation 1 8 274 

Searches and seizures, security against 294 

Senate, composed of two Senators from each State 1 3 26? 

how chosen, classed, and terms of service 1 3 26? 

qualifications of Senators 1 3 268 

Vice President to be President of the 1 3 268 

shall choose their officers 1 3 268 

shall be the judges of the elections and qualifica- 
tions of its members 1 5 269 

what number shall be a quorum 1 5 269 

any number may adjourn, and compel attendance 

of absentees 1 5 269 

may determine its rules 1 5 269 

may punish or expel a member 1 5 269 

shall keep a journal, and publish the same, except 

parts requiring secrecy 1 5 2*70 

shall not adjourn for more than three days, nor to 
any other place, without the consent of the other 

house 1 5 270 

one-fifth may require the yeas and nays 1 5 270 

may propose amendments to bills for raising rev- 
enue 1 7 271 

shall try impeachments 1 3 268 

effect of their judgment on impeachment 1 3 268 

compensation to be ascertained by law 1 6 270 

privileged from arrest 1 6 270 

not questioned for any speech or debate 1 6 270 

shall not be appointed to office 1 6 270 

Senator shall not be an elector 2 1 277 

Senators and Representatives, elections of, how pre- 
scribed 1 4 269 

Slaves, their importation may be prohibited after 1808. . . 19 275 
escaping from one State to another may be re- 
claimed 4 2 284 



310 INDEX TO THE CONSTITUTION. 

Art. Sea Page 

Soldiers not quartered on citizens 294 

Speaker, how chosen 1 2 267 

Speech, freedom of. 294 

States prohibited from — 

entering into treaty, alliance, or con- 
federation 110 2T6 

granting letters of marque 110 276 

coining money 1 10 2*76 

emitting bills of credit 1 10 276 

making any thing a tender but gold 

and silver coin 1 10 276 

passing bills of attainder, ex post facto 

laws, or laws impairing contracts. . . 1 10 276 

granting titles of nobility 110 216 

laying duties on imports and exports. . 1 10 276 

laying duties on tonnage 1 10 276 

keeping troops or ships of war in time 

of peace 1 10 276 

entering into any agreement or con- 
tract with another State or foreign 

power 1 10 277 

engaging in war 1 10 277 

States, new, may be admitted into the Union 4 3 285 

may be formed within the jurisdiction of others, 
or by the junction of two or more, with the 
consent of Congress and the legislatures con- 
cerned 4 3 285 

State judges bound to consider treaties, the Constitution, 

and the laws under it, as supreme 6 . 287 

State, every, guarantied a republican form of government, 

protected by the United States 4 4 285 

Supreme Court. (See Court and Judiciary.) 

Suits at common law, proceedings in 295 

T. 

Tax, direct, according to representation * . . . . 1 2 266 

shall be laid only in proportion to census. ... 1 9 275 

Tax on exports prohibited 1 9 275 



INDEX TO THE CONSTITUTION. 311 

Art. Sec. Page 

Tender, wh&t shall be a legal...-. 1 10 276 

Territory or public property, Congress may make rules 

concerning 4 3 285 

Test, religious, shall not be required 6 . 287 

Titles. (See Nobility.) 

Title from foreign states prohibited 1 9 276 

Treason, denned 3 '3 283 

two witnesses, or confession, necessary for con- 
viction 3 3 283 

punishment of, may be prescribed by Con- 
gress 3 3 283 

Treasury, money drawn from, only by appropria- 
tion 1 9 275 

Treaties, how made 2 2 280 

the supreme law 6 . 287 

can not make 1 10 276 



Vacancies happening during the recess may be filled tem- 
porarily by the President 2 2 281 

in representation in Congress, how filled 1 2 267 

Veto of the President, effect of, and proceedings on 1 7 271 

Vice President of the United States to be President of the 

Senate 1 3 268 

how elected 2 1 278 

amendment 296-7-8 

shall, in certain cases, 
discharge the duties 

of President 2 1 279 

may be removed by im- 
peachment 2 4 282 

Vote of one house requiring concurrence of the other. ... I 7 271 

w. 

War, Congress to declare 1 8 273 

Warrants for searches and seizures, when and how they 

shall issue, (4th amendment). . * 294 



312 INDEX TO THE CONSTITUTION. 

Art. Sec. Page 
Witness, in criminal cases, no one compelled to be, against 

himself, (5th amendment) 295 

Weights and measures, standard of. 1 8 213 

y. 

Yeas and nays entered on journal 1 5 270 



THE END. 



AN 2 1 1924 




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